Dangerous – the Untold Story of a Latinist
by elledottore
Summary: So much happened before Darla drove in. Wicked, reset in Baltimore. Extremely AU.
1. Chapter 1

**So, I'm discontinuing WCLC (for now), and am going to try and write this straight through. The characters should be pretty recognizable, but please let me know if you are confusified.**

**I'm gonna stay a couple chapters ahead to ward off writers' block.**

**Enjoy! **

Chapter 1

To the other cars on Interstate 95, it looked like a typical blue van. It was a dark blue, its newness gleaming in the afternoon sun shining over Baltimore. But behind the right side door, a ramp sat quietly, folded and ready. Next to the ramp, a girl of thirteen sat in her electrical wheelchair, looking out of the window at the sound barrier. Her father, Mr. Thornberg, kept his eyes on the road, searching for the Northern Parkway exit. To the girl's left, a pile of boxes sat, overflow from the U-Haul behind the van.

"Daddy," the girl said. "Could you pass me another pretzel?"

"Of course, little Rosie," Mr. Thornberg replied. "We're almost to our new home." Rose managed to grasp the pretzel rod, and take a bite.

"It doesn't feel like home yet," Rose said. "I miss New York."

"Oh, you'll like Baltimore! You'll make all kinds of friends at Roland Park!"

Behind the boxes, Rose's elder sister sat and listened. She knew _she _wasn't going to make "all kinds of friends." Baltimore City College advertised "acceptance," but who would ever accept her? Cow. Spotty. Mutt. Those names were what she was known as throughout her ten years of school. But her name was Elizabeth. She valued her name. She had been named after her maternal grandmother. Her mother had insisted on naming her and keeping her, and after she died giving birth to Rose, Elizabeth became Rose's official caretaker. At two years old.

But why did Elizabeth Thornberg go through such mental torture? Well, Mr. Thornberg suspected that she was a product of his wife's lax morals. Specifically, of relations between Mrs. Thornberg and the African American man who ran the local pharmacy on 40th Street. Another reason could have been the matter of Elizabeth's skin. It was not a fine golden color like most people of mixed race, but instead had patches of dark and light skin throughout her body. Vitiligo. That was the name of her condition. Her curse, her father said. But she knew she could make City College great again. She was sure that the authorities would restore her passion: Latin.

Ah, Latin! Mrs. Thornberg had taught Elizabeth a little before she died, but that small amount of time hooked Elizabeth for good. She was determined to be a Latin teacher, and she knew that Baltimore City College could get her there! She was happy about the move, she decided.

"Eliza!" Rose squealed. "Look! We're here!" Elizabeth looked out the window, and saw a red brick house with a long ramp leading to the door.

"I see that," Elizabeth said cheerfully. "It looks like a perfect house for you, Rosie."

"Elizabeth!" Mr. Thornberg shouted. "Quit chattering and untie your sister! Don't be lazy!"

"Yes Dad," Elizabeth said in a monotone. Obediently she took the tie downs off Rose's chair. But it was hardly a chore. Elizabeth loved her sister, and would do anything for her. If only her father believed that.

Mr. Thornberg and Elizabeth spent the next two hours unpacking boxes and arranging furniture. They did Rose's room first, which really was two rooms made into one, with an adjacent bathroom. Then they got the dining room in order, setting up the table and chairs and such. In the end, Elizabeth was left to set up her room on her own. She had a bed that was a foot off the ground, a small wardrobe, and a desk.

And books. Tons of books that either her mother had given her, or that she had convinced Rose to buy for her. Oh yes! She had Shakespeare, Homer, Sophocles, Virgil, and so much more! She had _Le Fantom de l'Opera _in its original French, much more complicated than the frivolous Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. And so she read until Mr. Thornberg shouted that he and Rose were ready for dinner.

Throughout dinner, Rose went on and on about how excited she was about eighth grade. "And there's a dance in April!" she squealed. "I hope a cute boy asks me! Do you think someone will, Daddy?"

"All the boys will want to dance with my pretty Rosie," Mr. Thornberg replied lovingly. "Especially after I give her a present! Elizabeth! Clear the table!"

"Yes Dad."

By the time Elizabeth was done cleaning up after dinner, Mr. Thornberg had found his present for Rose. "I only put two pieces of tape on it," he said putting a large, thin box on the table in front of Rose. "I know how you like to open presents by yourself."

"Thank you, Daddy," Rose said sweetly as she started to tear the tape. "Oh, Daddy! It's beautiful!" With her left hand, she pulled out a flowing river of brown velvet. Elizabeth's eyes widened at the smooth, shining folds and the dangling beads at each end. "What a beautiful scarf!" Elizabeth almost automatically stood up to help Rose drape the scarf over her shoulders.

"Oh, my Rosie!" Mr. Thorneberg exclaimed. "You look simply elegant in that!"

"You really do," Elizabeth agreed. "Rose, don't even worry. You'll get a boyfriend in no time with that scarf."

"Oh, Eliza," Rose said comfortingly. "Daddy knows you don't need things like this."

"Well, what could he get me anyway? I clash with everything!" The sisters chuckled quietly.

Elizabeth was ready for bed and reading _The Odyssey _when Mr. Thornberg knocked on her bedroom door. "Elizabeth? Are you decent?"

"Yes Dad." She stood up and let her father in. "What is it?"

"You are starting your sophomore year tomorrow. But remember that the only reason you are even going to school is because you are required by law. If I had it my way, you would be your sister's aide in school instead of that incompetent old woman I just got off the phone with. But I forbid you to make a spectacle of yourself by babbling in that dead language that your sainted mother for some reason loved!"

"Alright, Dad. I understand. No Latin." Her voice quivered. She couldn't see how her father could hate such a beautiful language so much.

"Good. Now get to bed!"

Elizabeth tried to sleep that night, but excitement was her enemy despite her father's earlier insults. Tomorrow would be the start to her new life, a new chance at pursuing her passion. Mr. Oswald, the principal of City, would surely help her restore Latin. _Oh, what a pair we'll be, _she thought. _Mr. Oswald and I. _Not too long after, she fell asleep.

**Hope you like it! **

**Thanks for reading!**

**Cheers,**

**Elle Dottore**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Rosie … time to get up. Rose! Get up!" Elizabeth smacked her sister lightly on the behind. "It's time for school. I can't carry your dead weight!"

Rose stirred. "Mmmph, Eliza, one more minute."

"NO! It's 6:15! Time to roll!" Determinedly, Elizabeth yanked Rose's covers off and slid her sideways on the bed. With a grunt from Elizabeth, Rose was sitting on the side of her purple bed. Elizabeth then proceeded to walk Rose over to her wheelchair in a kind of square dance method. In a short time, Rose was wearing a lacy navy blue shirt and a khaki skirt as well as, of course, her brand new velvet scarf.

"Eliza, could you put my hair in a headband?" Rose asked once she and Elizabeth were at her mirror. "The purple one. I'm trying to blend in with all the Ravens fans."

"Ah, all three of us are still Giants fans at heart," Elizabeth said as she pulled Rose's hair up. "But still, when in Rome. Rose, I'd say you look smashing!"

"Thank you, Eliza! So do you!"

"Ah, little sis, we mustn't tell lies. C'mon, let's eat!" Elizabeth was only half joking there. While accepting her strange appearance, she also accepted the world's universal opinion that she was decidedly unattractive.

After a relatively quiet breakfast, Mr. Thornberg started up the van, and they were on their way to City College. Elizabeth would have loved to listen to the Beatles' White Album, but Rose was insistent on One Direction, so that was pretty much a settled matter. But, soon enough, they were at the bottom of City's hill. Mr. Thornberg threw open the car door. "Go. Try not to talk so much."

"Bye, Eliza!" Rose called. "Have a good day!"

"You too," Elizabeth replied. "Bye!"

And so, Elizabeth started her strenuous trek up the hill. About halfway up, another girl approached her. "Hi! I'm Heather! Are you new?" Then however, her welcoming smile froze as she really registered Elizabeth. "Oh." She passed Elizabeth as discreetly as she could.

"Nice to have met you," Elizabeth muttered sarcastically.

Her first class of the day happened to be English, taught by a middle aged woman with excessive makeup, Mrs. Grufuld, who also was the coordinator for the International Baccalaureate program at City. Elizabeth surmised that she was a very intelligent woman, but with a gleam her eyes that Elizabeth couldn't quite figure out.

"Welcome to MYP English II, sophomores," Mrs. Grufuld greeted the class. "This year, you will be studying American literature, specifically the struggle of the black man and the immigrant."

"Mrs. Grufuld!" a blonde girl called out in a screechy voice that Elizabeth found extremely annoying.

"Yes … Libby Baldor," Mrs. Grufuld said, seemingly a bit irritated as well.

"Did you read my essay on _Kindred_? You must remember it: 'Time Travel – Where's the Destination?'"

"Yes dear, I'm sure I did. Now, class, who can tell me the theme of _Kindred_?" Elizabeth immediately raised her hand. "Yes … Elizabeth Thornberg?" She blinked at Elizabeth's skin color, but restrained herself.

"Well, one is in control of one's own destiny. This is represented by Dana actually going into the past to save her future."

Mrs. Grufuld was stunned. This girl would be perfect for IB! "That … is the most astute, concise answer I've ever had in all my fifteen years of teaching!" Elizabeth smiled nervously as the white parts of her face turned red. Some of the students started mumbling, and Elizabeth could have sworn she heard the word "cow." _Here we go again. _

"What about my essay?" Libby quietly whined.

"That's an outrage!" the boy next to her said.

"You're absolutely right, Dan!"

"It's Ben."

"Ben. Sorry." But out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth could tell that Libby was not all sorry. _Gosh, there's one in every school, isn't there? _She sighed, and suddenly felt sorry for Ben.

"Now, does anyone want to introduce themselves?" Mrs. Grufuld asked near the end of class.

Elizabeth stood up. This was her chance. "My name is Elizabeth Thornberg. Yes, I've always had vitiligo. No, I did not bleach my skin like Michael Jackson. No, I did not drink cow's milk as an infant! Got that? Good! God bless America!" Her classmates were still stunned when the bell rang for second period.

After surviving Geometry, AP US History, and Band, Elizabeth was ready for lunch. She ignored her classmates' jeers and found a quiet table in a corner of the cafeteria. She settled in with her peanut butter and jelly sandwich and _The Odyssey_, and began her quiet lunch. _Ah, Homer! My faithful friend! _A grin appeared on her face as she read her favorite part: when Odysseus outsmarts the Cyclops and blinds him.

"Elizabeth?" Her head jerked up to see Mrs. Grufuld smiling down on her. "I'm sorry to interrupt your reading, but I would like to discuss the IB program with you. Is now a good time?"

"Sure," Elizabeth said, closing her book. "I'm free."

"Your summer essay was outstanding, especially since you are a transfer student, and your response today in class only proved my suspicions. I think you are a very good candidate for the IB diploma. Does it appeal, Elizabeth?"

"Depends. Will my father have to pay for it?"

"Oh, not at all! Even the testing is completely free! And Elizabeth, do you want to know something else?"

"Sure."

"Mr. Oswald may want to meet you to test you and interview you for full IB." Elizabeth inhaled deeply in her excitement.

"Oh, Mrs. Grufuld, really?"

"Of course, I'll have to keep observing you until March to make sure you keep your standard, but in March, you can declare your desires to Mr. Oswald!" Elizabeth had to cover her mouth in order to suppress a squeal.

"Oh my gosh! Don't worry, Mrs. Grufuld! I won't fail you!" Mr. Oswald rarely saw students, Elizabeth had heard, so the fact that she could meet and talk with him filled her with a fresh hope that she hadn't felt in a long time.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Though Libby Baldor had a blast during lunch on her first day of sophomore year, there were still worries in the back of her mind. Why was Mrs. Grufuld favoring that weird spotted girl? And more to the point, why was Mrs. Grufuld not favoring her? After all, in her opinion, she was the epitome of intelligence and beauty, adored by students and teachers alike. She watched Mrs. Grufuld talk to Elizabeth, and she saw Elizabeth's pale and brown face light up like a Christmas tree.

"Guys, how about that cow girl in English today?" Libby asked her friends.

"Omigosh!" Bella exclaimed. "She is so creepy! She's in my APUSH class, and she would not stop ranting about the Greeks! It was so weird!"

"I know!" Hannah agreed. "Like, what does Greece have to do with America?"

"And in English, Mrs. Grufuld was positively salivating over her!" Libby exclaimed, taking charge of the conversation once more. "It was so unfair! I worked so hard on that essay!"

"Oh, Libby, you are too good!"

Libby had MYP Chemistry after lunch, and by bad luck, so did Elizabeth. Libby took a seat as far away from the spotted girl as possible. She tried to calm herself down as the teacher, Ms. O'Malley, started yammering about all the boring chemistry stuff they were going to be learning over the course of the year.

"Now we will try and make a copper penny appear to be gold," Ms. O'Malley said. "This experiment is mainly to get you accustomed to the lab, and to assign you lab partners. Remember, this is completely at random, and you might have to work with someone you might not particularly like, such as an ex boyfriend or something, but I'm not changing anything for anyone, so just deal with it. Regina Martin and Tarrance Davis." She kept calling out partners, and finally, the last pair was made. "Elizabeth Thornberg and Libby Baldor. Hop to it, little alchemists!"

Both Elizabeth and Libby's feet felt like lead as they gravitated toward the only empty lab table left. Libby sat down with a thwump, which Elizabeth surveyed the materials and started to prepare the proper solution. She smacked the test tube onto the hot plate and turned to Libby. "If you do nothing else, will you at least put the damn penny in?"

Libby shrugged. "No."

"What?! Why not? The tongs won't ruin your precious manicure, I promise."

"Look, cow girl, I don't want to do this! It's boring, and it's even more tedious with you!"

Elizabeth bristled. "Fine!" She snatched up the tongs, and plopped the penny into the solution. Both girls watched the penny with daggers in their eyes. Elizabeth's brown eyes narrowed as the penny slowly took on a golden sheen. "I think it's done." She carefully lifted the penny out of the solution, and put it on a paper towel.

"Pretty!" Libby exclaimed. "We turned it gold!"

"We didn't do anything," Elizabeth snapped. "I gave it a bromide layer to make it look gold. Now, I'm gonna go and show this to Ms. O'Malley." It was in that moment that both Elizabeth and Libby experienced an emotion that neither of them had ever felt before: loathing, unadulterated loathing! Why did Elizabeth have to be so serious?! Why did Libby have to conform to every stereotype about popular blondes?!

Unfortunately for the loathing lab partners, they had another class together: French II, taught by an older, half French, half Iranian man named Monsieur Hirum. "Bonjour, classe," he said once everyone was settled. "I am Monsieur Hirum, and I welcome you to the second year of your study of French. Maintenant, direz-moi au sujet ton été. Oui, Mademoiselle Balter."

"It's Baldor," Libby said, irritated. Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Et, dans l'été, j'ai vu à un poisson." Realizing what the blonde was trying to say, Elizabeth started laughing behind her hand.

Monsieur Hirum blinked. "Over the summer, you … saw a fish?"

"No! I went to the pool!"

"Ah, Mademoiselle Balter, that would be, 'Dans l'ete, j'ai venu au piscine.' Understand?"

"Baldor!" Libby shrieked. "Honestly, I don't see what the problem is. All my other teachers can say my last name perfectly well!"

"Libby, I think Monsieur Hirum has more important things to worry about than the pronunciation of your precious name," Elizabeth cut in. "Maybe he doesn't worship you like other teachers. Maybe some of us are different."

"What a mad cow!" Libby quipped quietly.

"Merci, Mademoiselle Thornberg," Monsieur Hirum said. "Voudrais-vous dire au sujet ton été?" As the class left that day, Monsieur Hirum pondered the fiery multicolored girl. She was almost good enough for French III, he thought. On his way to the teacher's parking lot, he paused outside Mrs. Grufuld's office, longing to break in and take back what was his.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

As the weeks went on, Elizabeth began to actually really like school. True, the comments from her fellow classmates were unkind and a little bit stupid, but her teachers liked her, especially Mrs. Grufuld and Monsieur Hirum. In Chemistry, Elizabeth basically had to do all the work for Libby, but she had fun making Libby feel very uncomfortable, asking her if she would like to help every five minutes.

Meanwhile, Rose was accepted with open arms at Roland Park. Every night at dinner, Mr. Thornberg and Elizabeth were forced to listen to the latest eighth grade gossip. (Cassy and David were seen holding hands in the hallway yesterday even though David's dating Bree! Gasp!) Elizabeth would mentally let out an exasperated sigh. _She's like Libby but sweeter. _Though disabled, Rose was a tragically beautiful girl, with her chestnut brown hair and dark blue eyes. Elizabeth mentally joked that she was beautifully tragic.

Overall, French was Elizabeth's favorite class. She marveled at its similarities to Latin, and how easy it was to learn. Just like Latin, it flowed through her like water, its volume increasing by the day. "Je ne pourrias pas lever cette matain," she said one day in October. "Mon pere etait tres fache!" _I could not get up this morning. My father was very angry! _

Monsieur Hirum chuckled. "Avez-vous eu un grand fete dans la nuit?" _Did you have a grand party in the night? _

Elizabeth snorted. "A peine! J'ai lu l'_Aneiad_." _Hardly! I was reading the _Aneiad_. _

"Par Virgil?" _By Virgil? _

"Oui! Tu as lu cette?" _Yes! You were reading that? _In her excitement, Elizabeth forgot the imperfect for the verb "lire," and didn't notice that she was standing up. Libby snickered.

"I have read that many times, Mademoiselle Thornberg," Monsieur Hirum said, switching to English. "First in French, then in the original Latin."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "You know Latin?!"

"Of course, I taught Latin here for fifteen years! Then the administration decided to concentrate on the International Baccalaureate program, and that was that. I'm lucky I grew up speaking French."

Libby was now thoroughly annoyed. "Can you just teach us French?!" she screeched. "You don't need to harp on about language!"

"Why don't you just keep your mouth shut about what you don't know?" Elizabeth snapped. "Sorry about that, Monsieur – or, I guess Magister Hirum. You can go on now, sir."

"Gratias tibi ago, Domina Elizabeth," Magister Hirum said. "Oh, children, I wish you could have seen this school as it once was! All freshmen were required to take Latin as a foundation for their language learning. And they loved it! The love of learning was so palpable! Back then, everything was a bit more … colorful." He smiled good naturedly at Elizabeth.

"But … why do we need Latin?" Libby asked, genuinely curious.

"Ah, good question! Perhaps this French sentence will show you." Magister Hirum flipped over one of his chalkboards, and all the students gasped. For written on the chalkboard was no French sentence, but: LATIN IS DEAD AND FRENCH IS DYING.

"Who could do this?" Elizabeth whispered to herself.

"Who wrote this?!" Magister Hirum bellowed. "Well? I'm waiting for an answer!" No one spoke. No one moved. One could have heard a pin drop. Everyone jumped when the dismissal bell rang. They all could not have left the classroom faster. Except for Elizabeth.

"Hey, you okay?" she asked Magister Hirum, walking up to his desk. "You shouldn't let ignorant statements like that get to you. I mean, I always do, but you shouldn't."

"Oh, Domina Elizabeth, don't worry about me," he said dismissively. "Run along and join your friends."

"Oh, that's alright. I have no friends. And anyway, I can bring Latin back. I know I can. We can do it together!" Magister Hirum smiled at the multicolored girl's enthusiasm.

"The last principal before Mr. Oswald was the worst you could have. He inflated the grades of athletes, and made this school a disgusting place. And he took away Latin. Or at least that's what I was told. Right after I was informed that I was to be teaching French for the 2008-2009 school year, Mr. Oswald was instated as principal. He has improved this school enormously, but he has not brought back Latin yet." Elizabeth was enthralled.

"Couldn't you just ask him to bring back Latin?"

Magister Hirum shook his head. "He is a recluse, only acting through Mrs. Grufuld. But I WILL speak out about the events in class today!"

"And I will too," Elizabeth said, her voice colored with passion. "I'm meeting him in March! I'll tell him we're interested!"

"Oh, you are a rare gem, Domina Elizabeth!" Magister Hirum exclaimed. "Bonam fortunam habeas! May you have good luck!"

On the ride home, neither Rose nor Mr. Thornberg could figure out why Elizabeth was grinning from ear to ear. But Elizabeth now had motivation for her cause, and an ally. An adult ally, no less, or what was considered an adult at City. Possibilities grew for her every day, and her future became more and more unlimited. Elizabeth now had the tools and the talent to make good.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

On November 16th, Ms. O'Malley had her chemistry students do a lab on the effect of hydrochloric acid on sodium. Elizabeth was shocked when Libby actually snatched up the beaker of hydrochloric acid, and poured it into the test tube. "Well, well!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "Did you hit your head and catch amnesia?"

"Very funny, Spotty," Libby said cheerfully. "But even you can't get me down today! Wanna know why? You better, because I'm gonna tell you! You ready for this?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "No, but go on if you must."

"FEJIRO AKELEMO IS COMING TO CITY COLLEGE!" Libby shouted into Elizabeth's ear. "He's Maya's friend with the reputation that is so scandalatious! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

"I'm almost certain that 'scandalatious' is not a word," Elizabeth said, cleaning out her ear. "And, could you repeat that a little louder? I'm not sure they heard you on the moon."

"Oh, come on! I know you're a weirdo, but he's Fejiro Akelemo! His dad owns a Nigerian steel company or whatever, and he's expanding his beeswax to America! They're rich! Like me!"

"And you're so excited about the prospect of a hot, African mess to put your arm under that you're telling everyone about it, even the cow girl you despise."

"Exactly!" Suddenly, Libby squealed again. "Omigod, he's here!" Elizabeth turned to see a tall, muscular, dark skinned boy talking to Ms. O'Malley.

She rolled her eyes once again. "You go ahead and flirt; I'll work on this lab." She looked around at their lab station. "Hmm, we don't have any water. Be right back, Libby." But Libby was too busy tossing her blonde curls and staring at Fejiro.

Elizabeth filled her glass beaker with cold water, and then started back to the lab station. But she was so busy thinking about what units she would measure sodium with that she failed to notice Fejiro Akelemo coming down the opposite way. As for him, he was musing about which girl he would bang on homecoming night. He did not notice the multicolored girl until he found himself being knocked backwards. He quickly grabbed onto a lab table to keep from falling. Elizabeth, however, had not been so lucky. She cursed as she hit her head on the linoleum and heard the shattering of glass. "Whoa there, Poopy Face!" Fejiro exclaimed in a thick Nigerian accent guaranteed to make girls swoon. "No need to be a potty mouth!"

"Oh, very mature!" Elizabeth snapped. "Poopy Face?' Really?! I haven't heard that one since first grade! Now, are you going to be an actual gentleman and help me off the floor?"

"No," Fejiro said bluntly. "I only help pretty girls off floors. I am a gentleman, yes, but you are not a lady."

Elizabeth shot upright into a standing position. "You broke my glass, you jerk!" And she proceeded to hit him over the head with the biggest piece of her glass beaker.

Fejiro was stunned. "You hit me! I've never been hit by a girl before! Not in Nigeria!"

"Well, welcome to America!"

"Welcome to America," Libby said seductively, coming up to the scene. "I'm Libby Baldor. Are you looking for something, or … someone?"

"I can live without water," Elizabeth declared. "I'm going back to our lab station now."

"I am Fejiro Akelemo," Fejiro said once Elizabeth was gone. "And you, Libby Baldor, are very beautiful."

Libby tossed her hair. "I've heard."

"When I came here to America, I was informed of this tradition called homecoming. It is a sort of dance, correct?"

"Mmm-hmm. But it's not for another two weeks."

"Who cares? I say we get excited about it now!"

Ben, upon hearing the gist of the conversation, rushed over. "But this is City College!" he exclaimed. "We don't care about dances and stuff! We just focus on our studies! Woo, college!"

"That is quite an unhealthy attitude toward life!" Fejiro exclaimed with a laugh. "I, personally, have been to every high school in Abuja, and I have been expelled from every single one! But, what I've found is that schools teach really boring, useless things, such as history, math. There are things that matter more in life! Wouldn't you agree, Libby?"

"Oh, yeah," Libby said, giggling. "I'll believe anything you say! Listen to him, Dan! He brings true wisdom from Africa!"

"It's Ben," Ben corrected quietly.

Suddenly, Fejiro leaped up onto a lab table. "WHO IS READY FOR HOMECOMING?" The class erupted into cheers, despite Ms. O'Malley's protests. Elizabeth just shook her head and collected her data in silence.

On his trek down the hill that afternoon, Ben finally plucked up his courage. He smoothed his hair, and strode boldly down to where Libby was walking with Fejiro. "Hey, Libby," he said cheerfully. "What's up?"

"Not much!" Libby chirped. "You?"

"Well, actually, I have a proposition for you. Thanks to Fejiro, I'm all excited about homecoming, so I was wondering if you would like to go with me. Do you? Wanna go with me, I mean?" He silently cursed himself for blubbering.

For a few seconds, Libby was in turmoil with herself. Ben Wright was sweet; she couldn't flat out reject him. But then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rose and Mr. Thornberg waiting for Elizabeth outside their van. Libby had watched the Thornbergs reunite many times, and an idea came to her.

"Aww, you're so nice!" she exclaimed. "But you know what would be even nicer? See that poor girl in the wheelchair? That's Rose, Elizabeth Thornberg's little sister. I bet she would be the happiest girl on Earth if someone asked her to homecoming. But who is up for the job?" She pretended to think.

"I could ask her!" Ben exclaimed. "I would be happy to!"

Libby's face brightened. "Oh, Dan, really? You would do that for me?"

"I would do anything for you, Libby!" He had made her happy! Joy! Rapture!

Rose, meanwhile, was getting quite annoyed. Her sister was late, again, probably because she was chatting with that goat of a French teacher, Monsieur Hirum. Mr. Thornberg would yell at Elizabeth, and Rose hated it when her father yelled. Suddenly, a voice jolted her from her thoughts. "Hello," a rather short boy said. "I'm Ben Wright. Are you Rose Thornberg?"

"Yeah," Rose answered warily. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, I'm in some classes with your sister, and … er … she talks about you all the time!"

Rose smiled. "Eliza is a chatterbox."

"Yeah, she is. So, anyway, we have this homecoming dance in two weeks, so … would you like to, you know, be my date?"

Rose sprung up in her chair like a rocket. "I would love to! Yes! Can I, Daddy?"

"Of course you can," Mr. Thornberg said with a smile. "Son, I like you already. Take care of her, will you? She's delicate, my Rose."

"Yes sir," Ben mumbled. "So … I'll see you around, Rose."

"Bye!"

Both of the Thornberg sisters had too much homework to really speak with one another until Rose's shower. "There's this new guy from Nigeria in some of my classes," Elizabeth said as she washed Rose's hair. "Fejiro Akelemo. Ugh. Blessedly, no one was excited about homecoming until he came and stirred everyone up. Now everyone's going to the dance to worship him." She scrunched up her nose in disgust.

"I know!" Rose exclaimed. "Even me!"

Elizabeth blinked. "What?"

"Ben was too shy to ask me at first, but once Libby encouragized him …"

"'Encouragized' isn't a word." But then Elizabeth took in the rest of Rose's statement. "Wait. Libby?"

Rose's eyes darkened. "Now, Eliza, please don't hate on her. I'm going to have my first date because of her! I'm grateful, and you should be too. Please, Eliza, try to understand."

Rose's words melted Elizabeth's heart. "I do," she said with a smile.

It was a week before homecoming, and Libby had something that she was sure would make her friends laugh. "Look what my Nana sent me!" she said at lunch. "Isn't it hideodious?" It _was, _in her mind. It was a greenish grayish bowler hat that her grandfather had worn back in the '50s.

"It totally is!" Hannah agreed. "What girl would wear that?"

"Oh, I know!" Bella exclaimed.

"Bella, that question was rhetorical."

"I know, but Libby, think! Who would wear that hat? Possibly someone you're going to see next period? Hmm? You know who I'm talking about."

"I couldn't, could I?" Libby said with a sly smile. "Oh, why not?" And the girls all had a big laugh just thinking about it.

Over a steaming beaker of citric acid, Libby asked the multicolored girl, "Hey, are you going to homecoming?"

"Yeah, about that," Elizabeth began. "Rose and I were talking about you recently, and …"

"I was just talking about you!" Libby exclaimed. "I think you should wear this hat to homecoming!"

Elizabeth took the hat. "Well, I do have to take Rose …"

"Exactly! We'll all turn up! It'll be awesome! And please wear that hat! It's a gift out of the goodness of my heart, and it's so you!" Libby had to fight to keep from bursting out into giggles.

On homecoming night, Rose was primped and ready early. "You look beautiful, Rose," Elizabeth said. "As always. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to change."

"You're going?!" Rose asked, shocked.

"Yeah! First of all, I don't trust this Ben guy yet. But also, Libby invited me! Isn't that weird?"

"No, Eliza, it's not weird, because Libby is a nice person! When are you going to see that?"

"Hmmph, I'll see how she does tonight," Elizabeth said skeptically as she left. "Hey, I'm going to take a cab, so I'll see you there!"

"Alright!" Elizabeth changed in a hurry. Before she could party, she had some unfinished business to take care of.

By the time Rose and Ben arrived in the gymnasium, the dance was already taking off. Libby had already been crowned homecoming queen, and now was dancing so vigorously with Fejiro that he found himself gasping for air. "So, Rose," Ben started.

"Yes?"

"Um, Rose? I have to tell you, well, the reason why I asked you to this dance."

Rose sighed. "Oh, Ben, I know why."

"For real?"

"I have cerebral palsy, and I'm in middle school, so you just wanted to make me feel better. Right?" She looked at him knowingly, for once looking a bit like her sister.

"No, no!" Ben exclaimed quickly. "It's because … um, because … well, because you're beautiful. I mean, not just pretty or sexy, but really beautiful."

"Oh, Ben!" Rose exclaimed. "I know we're meant to be! You're truly wonderful!"

"You know what? Let's dance."

"What?! I can't dance!"

"That thing can go to manual, right? Let's dance!" Rose squealed as Ben disengaged her chair and started spinning her around on the dance floor. The two beaded ends of her scarf slapped against the back of her chair, caught in the current.

The song ended, and Fejiro collapsed on the wooden bleachers. "I believe I have had enough dancing for now," he told Libby breathlessly. "You dance divinely, though, I must say."

"Well, thank you!" Libby squeaked, not catching his sarcasm. "You were pretty awesome too." She tossed her hair and flashed a smile.

"You know, on my first day here, I was impressed with the way you handled that short boy, asking him to go with that crippled girl. You're good."

She smiled modestly. "Well, I try. And just so you know, 'crippled' is kind of offensive. I know you weren't trying to be offensive, Fejiro baby, but a more proper term would be 'disabled.'"

"'Disabled.'" He smiled. "Thank you, Libby. I will remember."

"Libby Baldor!" a voice said from behind them, making both Libby and Fejiro jump. "I need to speak with you."

"Mrs. Grufuld!" Libby exclaimed, worried. "What's going on?"

"Despite my better judgment, I will consider you for full IB," Mrs. Grufuld said with a sigh. "And no need to thank me, dear, it was your lab partner who insisted on it."

"Elizabeth? How did you know she was my lab partner?"

"Oh, I have my ways. Anyway, she insisted that I tell you tonight, or else she would not do full IB." Libby was now too shocked to speak. "I don't think you'll do very well, to be honest. I hope you prove me wrong. I doubt you will. Have fun." With a flourish, Mrs. Grufuld left the gymnasium.

"You look dumbstruck, Libby Baldor," Fejiro said with a smile.

"I … I got what I wanted."

"Then, what is the matter?"

"Nothing!" Libby perked up again.

"Good. Let's dance."

After that dance, the music stopped, and all the students gravitated toward the punch bowl. All except for one. Elizabeth Thornberg stood, feet planted, wearing a plain black dress and her new bowler hat, in the middle of the gym. She felt everyone's eyes on her, and heard their quiet titters, and immediately she knew she had been tricked. _Fine,_ she thought. _I might as well make the most of it._ And she started dancing. She didn't know any official dances, but she started jogging in place, then spinning as she did that. Eventually her arms got involved, waving around like a witch doing a spell.

"Well, at least she's lost the vice of self consciousness," Fejiro whispered. "She looks ridiculous!"

"I … I did this to her," Libby whispered back. "Please excuse me, Fejiro." And, to Fejiro's shock, Libby walked straight up to Elizabeth. "May I cut in? You've got some pretty cool dance moves."  
>"Sure," Elizabeth replied, her opinion of the blonde teetering as she spoke. As they danced, the whole class joined in, and an eternal friendship began.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Over the weekend, Elizabeth received a friend request on Facebook from Libby, which Elizabeth accepted, still astounded over how Libby had changed. She also received requests from Ben (no doubt prompted by Rose) and Fejiro; the former she accepted immediately, the latter she debated over before finally deciding that if she wanted to be Libby's friend, she best not reject Libby's boyfriend, however brainless and annoying he might be.

On Monday, MYP Chemistry was the extended period, so Libby went back to Lab Station 4, where Elizabeth was working on her French homework. "Hey!" Libby greeted her lab partner. "Working on francais?"

"Just editing it," Elizabeth replied. "I haven't seen any mistakes so far, though."

"Oh, you're a language genius, you! By the way, what'd you get for number four? I don't mean give me the answer, I mean how did you translate it?"

Immediately, Elizabeth switched into student teacher mode. "Okay, so the sentence reads, 'Luc dansait et fêtait jusqu'à la matin, donc il sera fatigue aujourd'hui.' What verbs do you see in that sentence?"

"Um … dansait, fêtait, and … sera?"

"Right! Good job, Libby! Don't be doubtful! Now, what are the tenses of those lovely verbs?"

"Uh … the first two are imperfect, and 'sera' is …"

"Think, Libby! I know the answer's just locked up in that little upper class skull of yours! You know this!" Strangely, despite their stark contrast, Elizabeth felt entirely comfortable with teasing her new friend.

"Future! It's future!"

"Yes!"

"And, and the first part of it means, 'Luc was dancing and partying … until morning!'"

"Great! And the second part? 'So he …?'"

"'…will be …'"

"Come on, what does fatigue mean? Think of a certain English derivative!"

"Tired! 'So he will be tired today!"

"Hey, you did it! Ha, that sounds like Fejiro, doesn't it?"

Libby giggled. "It does! Thank you, Lizzie! Oh, is it alright if I call you Lizzie?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "It's a little perky, but okay."

"And you can call me … Libby! Anyway, Lizzie, now that we're friends, I've decided to make you my new project."

"Oh, you really don't have to do that."

Libby grinned. "I know. That's what makes me so nice! Now, are you doing anything on Saturday?"

Elizabeth's brow furrowed. "No. Dad has an all day meeting, and Rose has a date with Ben, so I'll be by myself for most of the day."

"Perfect!" Libby squealed. "Meet me at Towson Town Center at eleven o'clock sharp. We're going to have a girl's day out!"

And so Elizabeth arrived, apprehensively, at Towson Town Center that Saturday, in a long black skirt and her usual braid. She found Libby out front, jumping up and down and waving madly. "My, you look excited!" Elizabeth remarked. "I feel like I should be worried."

"No!" Libby exclaimed. "Don't be worried! You're in the hands of Libby Baldor, the Queen of Makeovers! Now, c'mon! Let's start at Macy's. You've got an awfully long way to go."

As soon as they entered Macy's, a young redhead greeted them. "Libby! Nice to see you again!"

"You too!" Libby squealed. "Lizzie, this is my fashion consultant, Nicky. Nicky, this is my new bestest friend, Lizzie! As you can see, Nicky, Lizzie has a very unusual skin tone, and that dress that she's wearing now is just … not done, so tell us your suggestions."

"Okay, Lizzie, I'm looking at you now, and I see a mix of light and dark," Nicky started. "So, what you wear should also be a mix of light and dark. So, I'm going to get a bunch of stuff that I think would work, and then you can try them on and decide for yourself. How's that sound?"

"Um …" Elizabeth didn't quite know what to say.

"That sounds awesome!" Libby cut in. "Let's do it!"

Soon Elizabeth found herself in the women's changing room, with a bunch of jeans, skirts and shirts of varying colors, and of course, Libby. "You know, I actually kind of like this one," Elizabeth said with a smile, smoothing out the folds of a lavender skirt. "There's something about it."

"See! I told you!" Libby exclaimed. "Now, let's tell each other secrets! I'll go first. Fejiro and I … are going to get married! Eeee!"

"He's asked you already?" Elizabeth seriously doubted it; Fejiro was not known for his commitment.

"No, he doesn't know yet." Elizabeth raised her eyebrows as the blonde bounced up and down in excitement. "Now, try on these jeans with this green shirt and tell me a secret!"

Elizabeth sighed as she took off the skirt. She completely trusted Libby now. "My father hates me."

"What?!" Libby was shocked; how could a father hate his own daughter?

"That's not the secret. The secret is: he has good reason. When Mom was pregnant with Rose, Dad had her take this anti melanin drug so the baby wouldn't …"

"Have viritiligo?"

"Vitiligo, yes. Anyway, Mom was very sick by the time Rose was born; she actually vomited during labor. Rose came out with her umbilical cord all tangled around her. It took her a week to get stable. And Mom … never woke up."

"Oh gosh, that's awful!" Libby frowned. "But … why would that make your dad hate you?"

"'Cause none of that would've happened if it hadn't been for me. Rose wouldn't have cerebral palsy."

"No! That is so not true!" Libby stood up and started unbraiding Elizabeth's hair. "It was the melanin drug's fault, not yours! Lizzie, just because that's your secret doesn't mean it's true." She pushed Elizabeth's hair to one side. "There. Let's see if you can't wear that outfit out. Eee! You're gonna be pop-u-lar!"

That evening, Elizabeth came home with an assortment of clothes and beauty products from Libby. She knew that this was Libby's way of showing she cared, and Elizabeth was grateful for that. "Oh, Eliza!" Rose exclaimed when she got home from her date. "Look at you! You're beautiful!"

"No, I'm not," Elizabeth said with a smirk. "But Libby tried."

Mr. Thornberg did not notice, and his only words of greeting to Elizabeth were to get dinner ready.

That Monday, Elizabeth wore her school uniform, but with some of the jewelry Libby had gotten her and some makeup. Her long black hair tumbled halfway down her back. She didn't feel beautiful, but she was getting there. Even Fejiro noted that Elizabeth had been "Libbyfied." Elizabeth began to actually kind of like Fejiro, despite his initial rudeness to her. Elizabeth, Libby, Fejiro, Rose, and Ben were happy in their charmed circle. Until January 16.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

There was snow on the ground, but the sun was shining brightly, making the snow sparkle so brilliantly that both Elizabeth and Libby were entranced. "You know," Elizabeth said. "The Latin word for 'white' can also mean 'beautiful.' Nix candida. How appropriate!"

"Yeah," Libby agreed, absentmindedly zipping and unzipping her jacket. "If only it could get us out of school."

"I'll second that," Fejiro said from behind, making both girls jump. "Don't we have a French quiz today?"

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Did you study?"

"No. I was counting on school being cancelled. What year was Marie Antoinette executed again?" This earned him a whack in the stomach from Elizabeth. "Ow! Elizabet!"

"My lips are sealed! It's your own fault you didn't study!"

Suddenly, Ben came up to them, talking on his phone. "Okay honey, that's fine. Yes, we're all set, don't worry. Of course I remember how to feed you! Look, I'll talk to you later; I gotta get to class. Yeah, love you too. Bye. Bye, Rose." He hung up and blew out an exasperated stream of air. "Women."

"Is my sister wearing you out?" Elizabeth asked with a laugh.

"You would not believe. She's called me five times today already!"

"Hey, at least you don't have to coordinate your 'ensemble,'" Fejiro said. "Honestly, who cares if I wear red and Libby wears pink? That's like bullshit."

"Hey, I'm right here!" Libby whined. "And watch your language!" A laugh burbled out of Elizabeth before she could stop it.

"What are you cackling about, Elizabet?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing." Elizabeth shook her head. "The only thing is that Libby used that word just last week, about our math homework."

"That was for good reason," Libby pointed out. "Those triangles were a bitch."

Magister Hirum's 11th period class found him in a state. He was desperately packing his bags and signing out of his computer. He appeared as if he had seen the Loch Ness monster. "Magister Hirum?" Elizabeth asked concernedly. "What's going on?"

"Treachery, treachery, Domina Elizabeth!" Magister Hirum moaned. "I am accused of smoking tobacco. I am asked, no, ordered, to leave school grounds immediately! Just got the notice on that wretched machine there!"

"But, but, no!" Elizabeth spluttered. "You can't! You couldn't have! Magister!"

"Be cheery, Elizabet," Fejiro said. "We probably don't have a quiz now."

"Fejiro!" She hit him on the arm. Mrs. Grufuld suddenly came into the room with a man who Elizabeth was sure was the new teacher. She seized her opportunity. "Mrs. Grufuld, you can't permit this! This is unjust!" The whole class starred at Elizabeth as she leapt out of her seat in a rush of outrage.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth hun, but rules are rules," Mrs. Grufuld said, trying to be comforting. "Mr. Hirum, do you have all your things?"

"I do," Magister Hirum spat. "Classe, discipuli et discipulae, I leave you now. Thank you for your conversations, your essays …" He looked over at Elizabeth, who was still fuming from her seat. "Your righteous enthusiasm."

"Come on, Hirum," a school policeman said.

"THE POLICE?!" Elizabeth screamed, standing up again. "You can't arrest him! It's unwarranted! Magister! MAGISTER HIRUM!" But Magister Hirum was already gone. Elizabeth sat down, defeated.

"Chill, Lizzie!" Libby hissed.

"Okay, students," the new teacher said. "I am Mr. Knox, and I'm here to teach you not only French, but the diverse cultures of Francophone countries."

"We're not gonna learn any French," Elizabeth whispered to Fejiro. "I just know it." Fejiro just shrugged; he knew Elizabeth was getting a terrible reputation as a loudmouth.

"First, we will learn about Mozambique …"

Elizabeth stood up yet again. "Excusez-moi, Monsieur Knox? Je voudrais apprendre francais, s'il vous plait." _Excuse me, Mr. Knox? I would like to learn French, please. _

"Well, um, mademoiselle, this is a French class …"

"You don't even know any French, do you?! Vous etes merde!" The better students gasped at Elizabeth's extreme language as she punched the wall with her fist, as if it was Mr. Knox. Immediately pain shot through her wrist. "Ah! I shouldn't have done that!"

Mr. Knox gave a gusty sigh. "Will someone please take … Elizabeth Thornberg to the nurse?"

"I will." All heads turned to see Fejiro Akelemo standing up boldly. "Shall we go, Elizabet?"

"Sure," Elizabeth mumbled. "Hold my wrist steady." On their way out, they did not notice that they bumped into a freshman outside the door.

"So," Fejiro started as they walked down the hallway. "Why did you break your wrist anyway?"

"Oh, just for the hell of it," Elizabeth quipped. "'Cause I was angry, that's why! Magister Hirum! You should be, too."

"Why is it that every time I see you, you are always causing some sort of commotion?"

Elizabeth sighed sharply. "I don't cause commotions; I am one." She laughed darkly at her own joke.

They made their way down the stairs. "That's for sure," Fejiro mumbled. Immediately he regretted it.

"Oh, so I should keep my mouth shut, is that what you think?!"

"Elizabet …"

"Do you think I want to care? Do you think I WANT to be this way?!"

"Bet …"

"Do you realize how much EASIER my life would be if I didn't?!"

Fejiro inhaled sharply. "Do you EVER let anyone else talk?!"

Elizabeth suddenly felt a little remorseful. "Sorry. But can I just say one more thing? You didn't have to take me to the nurse. You could've let Libby or someone else do it."

He scoffed. "So?"

"So," Elizabeth went on as they entered the nurse's office. "However self absorbed and shallow you pretend to be …"

"Excuse me!" Fejiro exclaimed hotly. "I am no play actor! I happen to be genuinely self absorbed and deeply shallow!"

They sat down. "No, you're not," Elizabeth said, unsmiling and thoughtful. "Or you wouldn't be so unhappy." Fejiro had to keep his mouth from dropping open. No one had ever seen through his façade before, especially not a girl! And, now that he looked at her more closely, Elizabeth was kind of _beautiful_. Those brown eyes …

"Um … uh …" he stuttered. "Do you mind if I call you Bet?"

"Beth? Sure!" she replied. "Heaven knows, it's better than Lizzie!" As they laughed together, Elizabeth noticed how Fejiro's laugh sounded like an exotic melody. His grip on her injured wrist was firm, but gentle, and it was warm.

"So, what happened here?" the nurse asked, finally coming over to see them.

"Elizabet here lost an argument with the wall," Fejiro reported with a smile. "And now her wrist has a boo-boo on it." Elizabeth shot Fejiro a look of death.

"Yep, it's definitely broken," the nurse confirmed, examining Elizabeth's wrist. "You lie down now, and I'll cast it for you, but you should probably have your doctor take an X-ray, okay?"

"Alright," Elizabeth said, lying down on the bed. "Fejiro, you should probably …"

"I should probably head class to back," Fejiro said, grappling with English words. "I-I mean, back to class. I go back to class now."

"Alright."

"Goodbye, Bet!"

"Bye, Fejiro!" As he left, some power possessed her. "Wait! Fejiro!"

"He's already gone, honey," the nurse said in a consoling tone. "You just lie quiet now; I'm almost done."

Damn it all! He was everything Libby said and more! He was kind. Yes, Fejiro Akelemo had the ability to be kind to someone like her. And those dreads … Oh, good Lord! She had let herself fall in love! How could he possibly want someone like her? He had Libby Baldor, with her golden curls and fair, perfect skin. But she could still almost feel his warm grip on her wrist. _No, Elizabeth, stop! You're not that girl. _She was in a morose mood for the rest of the day.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Since she had become friends with Libby, Elizabeth actually had people to eat with at lunch. Libby, Fejiro, Ben, and herself made a diverse, interesting social group, but they survived. Of course, Libby did most of the talking, Ben whined, and Elizabeth tried everyone with her rants about language and morality, but overall they were tight.

"So then, I told that girl to get herself over to Hollister before she embarrassed herself further," Libby babbled one day in late February. "Of course, realizing my eternal fashion wisdom, she did so."

"I'll be right back," Fejiro suddenly announced. "I need more mashed potatoes."

"Honestly, Fejiro!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "I don't know how you can eat that crap. It's vile."

"Hmm, have you ever tried it?"

"Sadly, yes." She twisted around to face him. "But listen, Fejiro, you all can come over to my house, and I'll show you what real mashed potatoes taste like."

"You do that." And then he quickly departed for the lunch counter.

As soon as Fejiro was out of earshot, Libby let out an exasperated sigh. "I don't know what's gotten into him lately!" she exclaimed. "He's acting so distant and moodified. And he's been thinking, which really worries me."

"Well, that is a problem," Elizabeth quipped. "Maybe he needs to see a doctor."

"Lizzie, this is not funny! It's really starting to freak me out! It all started the day Monsieur Hirum got fired. I didn't know that he cared that much about that old goat!"

"Well, I have to admit that Ella has a point there," Ben said. "They had no grounds on which to fire him."

"That's not the point! My boyfriend is possessed by demons!"

Elizabeth chuckled. "Libby, I highly doubt that Fejiro is possessed by demons." Suddenly, her phone beeped. "Oh! Incoming!" She went to her email app and saw that she had an email from Mrs. Grufuld. Mind reeling, she opened it.

_Dear Elizabeth, _

_I have thrilling news for you. Mr. Oswald is impressed with your performance this year and he would like to meet you! We both believe that you can handle the rigor of the IB program. In fact, you would be an asset to us! Please come to Mr. Oswald's office on March 15 at 6 pm sharp. Dress formally. You may bring a friend. _

_Best wishes, _

_Mrs. Dolores Grufuld, IB Coordinator _

"You have an interesting face," Ben observed. "What is it?"

"I got it," Elizabeth mumbled in disbelief. "I got it! I'm off to see Mr. Oswald!"

"Oh, Lizzie, that's fantastic!" Libby squealed as Fejiro sat back down. "FeFe, guess what? Lizzie's going to meet Mr. Oswald! Eee! Isn't that awesome!"

Fejiro smiled. "Yeah, congratulations, Bet. We should do something to celebrate." Elizabeth tried not to dwell on his perfectly white teeth.

"Well, Dad does have a conference trip this weekend," Elizabeth said conspiratorially. "Want me to talk it over with Rose?"

Libby hurt everybody else's ears with her squealing. "Yes, yes, Lizzie! A party at Chez Thornberg! Eee!"

And so that Saturday night, they all gathered at Elizabeth and Rose's house. Libby arrived first, perky as usual, and helped the Thornberg sisters make brownies for the occasion. Ben came not much later, and took it upon himself to eat the first two brownies. Fejiro was late, and by 7, Libby was in a tizzy. "He should be here by now," she groaned. "I've texted him, like, five times! What is his deal?!"

But just then, there was a knock on the door. "That's probably him," Elizabeth said, standing up. "I suppose I'll let him in. You can stop hyperventilating, Libby."

"I'll let him in!" Libby exclaimed, rushing over to the door. "Hey, Fejiro, baby!" She tossed her hair and kissed him.

"Hey Libby," Fejiro mumbled, breaking away from the kiss and heading towards Elizabeth. "Elizabet! Bet! The lady of the hour! Congratulations, again. I got these for you." From behind his back, he produced a beautiful bouquet of purple tulips.

"Oh, Fejiro, you really didn't have to get me anything," Elizabeth breathed, bewildered. She took the flowers. "They are beautiful though. Tulips, my favorite flower. How did you know?"

"I am a psychic," Fejiro said with a smile. "Anyway, I've been thinking …"

"So I've heard."

"I've been thinking about Mr. Hirum, and you breaking your wrist, and Latin, and … everything. I think about that day a lot."

"I do too." Had she said too much? Their eyes met, and Elizabeth found herself lost in his dark eyes.

"Me too!" Libby exclaimed, earning her several strange looks from the group. "I mean, poor Monsieur Hirum! I'm going to protest! I'm going to … change my name!"

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Change your name?"

"Yes! Instead of Libby Baldor, I am now Libby Balter! Just like Monsieur Hirum pronounced it!" Libby's grin was a mile wide.

"Well … great!" Fejiro said. "That's very admirable of you, Libby … Balter. I'll go order us pizza. What does everybody want? Pepperoni?" There was a mumble of consent. "Great! Great." He rushed into Rose's foyer to make the call. Libby looked crestfallen.

"See what I mean?" Libby shrieked quietly. "He's acting so weird! Maybe he's on drugs. Oh God, my boyfriend is on drugs!"

"I don't think Fejiro is on drugs, Libby," Elizabeth said. "He loves you! You're Libby Baldor, the Queen of Makeovers!" Rose giggled in agreement.

But Libby was serious. "I'm Libby Balter now."

Elizabeth sighed. "It doesn't matter what your name is; everyone loves you! And look, remember that Mrs. Grufuld said I could bring a friend with me to meet Mr. Oswald?"

"Yeah?"

Elizabeth smirked. "Well, guess who I'm gonna bring."

"Me?" Libby whispered.

"Of course you!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "Who else?"

"Oh, Lizzie!" And Libby felt infinitely better.

The pizza came, Elizabeth insisted on paying, and they all dug in. They were playing a game of Guess the Song when Rose suddenly shouted, "Alright! I hate to steal Eliza's thunder, but I have an announcement to make! I got accepted into City, and I'm running for class president!"

"Alright, little sis!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "That's awesome! Dad'll be so proud!" Elizabeth herself looked happier than she had looked at her own triumph.

"He'll be proud of you too, Eliza. We're all proud, aren't we? City forever!" And they all cheered and clinked glasses.

On the Ides of March, Elizabeth woke up early, and packed her formal, floor length, black dress along with her normal school supplies. At the last minute, she also packed the bowler hat that Libby had given her. She found she kind of liked it. She knew of the brutal murder that had taken place in 44 BC on this date, but she didn't think much of it. Elizabeth had no idea that she was about to be betrayed just like Julius Caesar.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"Libby, are you quite finished in there?"

"Yeah, hang on! I've just gotta zip up my dress. How's your hair, Lizzie?"

"It's fine. It's in a bun."

Elizabeth heard Libby's makeup case fall to the ground. "In a bun?! I'll be right out!" There was a frantic zipping, and then Libby emerged from the bathroom stall in a strapless yellow dress.

Elizabeth chuckled. "Is there something wrong with a bun?"

"You have such pretty hair, Lizzie," Libby said as she took out the bobby pins in Elizabeth's hair. "It deserves to be down. Now, makeup. Pucker up for me, please." Elizabeth did so, and Libby applied light red lipstick to Elizabeth's lips and mascara to her eyelashes.

"Libby, you do realize that I'm going to see _the principal,_" Elizabeth said, pretending to be annoyed. "I'm not going on a date."

"And you must look perfectified for Mr. Oswald! There! Look at you!"

Elizabeth snorted at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. "Yeah, I still look shitty. Now, come on! It's a quarter till 6!"

Mr. Oswald's office was guarded by a rather large man who made Libby speechless with fear until he said, "Oh! You must be Miss Elizabeth Thornberg and Miss Libby Balter! Come on in and make yourselves comfortable while I go tell Mr. Oswald you're here!"

"Fraidy cat," Elizabeth whispered.

"Shut up," Libby whispered back. "Thank you, sir. Lizzie and I feel welcome already!"

The guard bowed. "Then I am a success. You're very welcome, ladies."

Elizabeth and Libby sat down in comfy chairs while the guard went in to talk to Mr. Oswald. Libby read the school newspaper while Elizabeth tapped her fingers against the edge of her chair. She would never admit it, but she was nervous. What if she messed up? What if Mr. Oswald decided that she wasn't good enough? She was already a failure to her father; she couldn't be a failure to her school.

The guard came back out looking resplendent. "Mr. Oswald will see you now!"

"Thank you," Elizabeth said quietly while Libby grinned flirtatiously. Elizabeth's heart was pounding as she entered Mr. Oswald's inner office. Libby was obviously afraid too, as her pink nails dug into Elizabeth's hand.

Mr. Oswald was a chocolate colored, middle aged, bald man who still had youthful good looks. He sat at his desk with his hands folded and an expectant look on his face. Mrs. Grufuld stood by him, looking fiercely proud. "Good evening, young ladies," Mr. Oswald said cheerfully. "Which one of you is Elizabeth Thornberg?"

Elizabeth found her voice again. "I am, sir," she said. "My friend Libby is just here to cheer me on. I'm so happy to meet you!"

Mr. Oswald stood up. "That's what I love: making people happy." He shook Elizabeth's hand. She was agog; no one had ever shaken her hand! "Now, shall we begin, Mrs. Grufuld?"

"I'm ready," Mrs. Grufuld replied, opening her laptop. "You can start the interview." Elizabeth gulped nervously as she sat down. This was it.

"Now, Elizabeth," Mr. Oswald began. "What are your goals in joining the International Baccalaureate program?"

"Well, I want to make a mark on this school," Elizabeth said. "You have improved City so much since you've come here, that … I want to help you do more."

"Yes, ma'am! I appreciate that!" They shared a smile. "I know you're just a sophomore, but where do you plan to go to college?"

Elizabeth swallowed. "Either Yale University or the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign."

Mr. Oswald smiled. "Those are great choices, Elizabeth. I am confident that you can get into both of those schools. Next question: what are your career goals?"

"I would like to be a college professor," Elizabeth replied. "The classics. Latin. Greek. That's part of why I'm so excited to talk with you. I think restoring Latin to this school would help it immensely. If you would just rehire Magister Hirum, he would happily teach Latin, I'm sure."

"I'll handle this one, Mr. Oswald," Mrs. Grufuld said, standing up. "Elizabeth, the International Baccalaureate program has an agenda, and Latin is against that agenda. World cooperation requires that students learn as much modern language as possible. That's why we took away Latin. Here." She pulled a large textbook out of her bag. "We took this from Mr. Hirum."

Trembling, Elizabeth took the textbook. "'Wheelock's Latin.' H-he used this?"

Mrs. Grufuld nodded. "For fifteen years."

"You … you didn't help this school," Elizabeth spat so dangerously that Libby was frightened. "You are destroying it! You fired Magister Hirum!"

"Well, I did do that," Mr. Oswald said sheepishly. "But Elizabeth, you can still help City! For that matter, you can too, Libby!"

"Yes," Mrs. Grufuld agreed. "Your grades have improved immensely, Libby!"

"Thank you!" Libby exclaimed, blushing. "So, I'm all set for full IB?"

"No, you're not!" Elizabeth cried. "No one is! I'm out! And what's more, 'agenda' is plural. 'Agendum' is just one! It's a neuter noun!" And she grabbed Wheelock's Latin and ran from the room as fast as she could.

"Lizzie!" Libby called. "Hang on. I'll get her back lickety split! Lizzie!" Before either Mr. Oswald or Mrs. Grufuld could react, Libby dashed after her friend.

"Well, we gotta get her back," Mr. Oswald said. "She knows too much!"

"Don't worry, Mr. Oswald!" Mrs. Grufuld exclaimed. "I'll go to my office and make an announcement!"

Meanwhile, Libby found Elizabeth in the black box theater, in the sub basement. "There you are!" Libby shrieked. "Elizabeth, have you gone completely coocoo cocoa puffs?! You just ruined your chances of getting what you want! I hope you're happy!"

"I hope you're happy!" Elizabeth retorted. "You're just gonna do exactly what they want so you can keep your precious popularity!"

Before the girls could argue more, the intercom suddenly beeped. "Students and staff of Baltimore City College," Mrs. Grufuld began. "If you are in the building, please listen to this message. We now have a traitor among us. Don't listen to a thing she says. She is dangerous. She has stolen one of Mr. Oswald's books! She can easily be identified by her distorted, irregular pigmentation. This malediction, this repulsion, this TWISTED BITCH!"

"Don't be afraid," Libby squeaked, trying to convince herself as well.

"I'm not," Elizabeth whispered powerfully. "It's Mr. Oswald who should be afraid – of me."

"Lizzie, listen to me. Just say you're sorry, before it's too late! If you just admit that you did wrong, Mr. Oswald will be cool about it! You can have all you ever wanted!"

"I know … what you mean. But without Latin, it's not what I want, not anymore." Elizabeth gave a resigned sigh. "I can't be a sheep, Libby. I have to do what I think is right; I must trust myself. It's like IB is gravity, and I have to fly. I have to defy gravity!"

Libby shook her head. "Stop this! You're talking crazy talk, Lizzie!"

"I'm not. Why should I have to be with them and accept their limits? I might not be completely successful, but till I try I'll never know, right? Oh, I've always thought that because I was different, I had to be a normal as possible, but that price is just too high!"

There was a pounding on the door. "Open up, bitch!" It sounded like a football player. And his voice sent chills up both girls' spines.

"Lizzie," Libby squeaked. "What do we do?"

"There has to be another way out," Elizabeth moaned. "There! By that gate! Quick, let's run!"

"What?!"

"Come with me. Think of what we could do – together! You and me – fighting for Latin. Libby, that's the true meaning of 'City forever.' Making this school what it once was! Just think of that, Libby!"

Libby smiled nervously. "Well, we could work together …"

"Yes! They'll never bring us down!"

More knocking sent both Elizabeth and Libby back into reality. Elizabeth stuffed Wheelock into her bag. Libby suddenly started to feel sick. She wasn't sure about what her friend was planning to do. "Lizzie …"

"Well? Are you coming?"

"I … I can't. I hope you're happy though."

Elizabeth smiled understandingly. "You too. Good luck in full IB. And please, avoid me. It's for your own good." Then, she rushed out of the back door of the theater.

"Good luck in your campaign!" Libby called after her. "I'll miss you!"

But before Libby even had time to comprehend what had just happened, the football team burst in. "Where's the Twisted Bitch?" one of them demanded Libby. "Where'd she go?!"

"I'm out here!" Elizabeth called from outside. "It's not her! She has nothing to do with it! I'm the one you want! It's me! Come and get me!"

So the football team rushed outside to the field, with Libby in tow. Elizabeth was not on the football field, or by the bleachers; she was on top of the bleachers! "Lizzie!" Libby exclaimed in disbelief. Elizabeth looked foreboding up there, and even the football players were frightened.

"You tried your hardest, didn't you?" Elizabeth shrieked. "Well, try again later, fellas, because I am on a mission! One day you'll understand that I'm right and Mr. Oswald is wrong. I'll take him single handedly, because no one, not even him, is ever gonna bring me down!"

"Bravo, Lizzie," Libby whispered.

"She is twisted," a running back declared.

"Yeah," the quarterback agreed. "The Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers! She's dangerous! We're gonna get her one day!"

Elizabeth took no notice of them. "Pro libertate!" she exclaimed, intimidating them all and asserting her freedom forever.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

On the first day of her sophomore year of high school, Libby Baldor had been on top of the world. On the first day of her junior year, Libby Balter felt miserable. She wanted to find Elizabeth and make sure she looked properly fashionable for the first day, but then Libby remembered that Elizabeth was nowhere to be found. Instead, Libby found the other Thornberg sister, who was wiggling in her chair with excitement. She was talking very quickly to Ben, who looked a little bored. "Libby!" Rose exclaimed. "How are you? How was your summer?"

"Good," Libby said, forcing a smile. "Are you excited to be a freshman?"

"Oh yes! The freshman assembly is at nine, and I'm making a speech! Already, people are calling me 'Madam President!' It's so awesome!"

Libby giggled maybe a little too hard. "You deserve it, Rose! I mean, look at you, with that scarf! You look like a president!"

"So do you, Libby! The Good Bitch of the Juniors! The title suits you, just like my sister's title suits her!" Rose took on a superior air.

Libby seized her opportunity. "How is Lizzie? Is she okay?"

"She's gone berserk! She doesn't speak … at all! Even Dad's a little frightened of her. And as for me, I feel like I'm being taken care of by the Grim Reaper!"

"She's twisted," Ben agreed. "I saw her over the summer, and she gave me the finger!"

"Who gave you the finger?" Fejiro asked, coming up to them in his brand new football jacket.

"The Bitch," Ben spat. "I was at Chipotle, getting a taco, minding my own business, and she comes in, sees me, and flips me the middle finger! Like really, man, what is her problem?!"

"Well, she must have a beautiful … mind."

But Libby couldn't talk about Elizabeth anymore. She felt fidgety and uncomfortable. "Let's go to class now," she chirped. "Don't want to be late on the first day!"

Libby didn't hear much cheering during the freshman assembly, so she hoped Rose was taking her disappointment well. She decided that she would endorse Rose so people would get past her CP. Because Elizabeth had disassociated herself with Libby and the rest of the group, Libby was still adored by all of City College. Fat lotta good it did her.

The junior assembly was during period 6/7, which meant that Libby got to skip IB French III, still taught by the infamous Mr. Knox. That was good; she was growing to hate the man. She got to the auditorium early, and took her place with the other class officials. "Libby!" Mrs. Grufuld exclaimed happily. "How good of you to come early! And your sweetheart can sit next to you when he comes, don't worry."

"Thank you, Mrs. Grufuld!" Libby exclaimed. "It's going to be an amazing assembly!" _It's going to be a loooong hour and a half. _

The class started filing in slowly, and pretty soon, Libby felt a familiar tap on her shoulder. "Hello, Libby Balter," Fejiro said formally as he sat down. "Ready for this?"

"I hope so."

Mrs. Grufuld signaled everyone to be quiet and smiled slyly at the class. "Welcome back to City College, juniors!" she greeted them. "You are now upperclassmen; congratulations! Now, you all received information over the summer on how to protect yourself against the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers, but here are her two greatest enemies: Libby Balter and her handsome quarterback, Fejiro Akelemo!"

Beaming, Libby took to the podium, with Fejiro in tow. "Fellow Collegians," she began perkily. "I know you all are freaking out about the Bitch, but today is a happy day! It's the first day of our junior year! Yay! We have so much awesome stuff planned for this year! We've got ring ceremony, ring dance, and best of all, junior prom!" That, especially, got a huge cheer.

"Yes, Libby," Mrs. Grufuld said with a smile. "And your possible prom date is trying his hardest to find the Twisted Bitch, isn't that right, Fejiro?"

"It is my main goal for this year," Fejiro said firmly. "I don't think of her as a twisted bitch, but merely …"

"So, how does it feel?"

"It is quite frustrating! But nevertheless, I will do everything in my power to catch up to her, and …"

Mrs. Grufuld laughed. "No, hun, I meant going to prom with Libby!"

"Prom?!" Fejiro choked, turning to Libby. "But, but I've not asked you yet!"

"Oh, it's the twenty first century!" Libby laughed. "I can ask you! So, will you, FeFe?" She grinned at him provocatively.

"Of … of course! Yeah."

Libby clapped her hands. "Awesome! We're all going to have so much fun! I couldn't be happier!"

"I know you will have fun; you deserve it," Mrs. Grufuld added. "Especially after what happened over the vacation! Students, Mr. Oswald had Libby come to his office in July to formally proclaim her the Good Bitch of the Juniors, when the Twisted Bitch somehow got in!" There was a wave of shock in the crowd. "She spoke in that oppressive language, Latin, and it sounded like she was threatening Libby!" More murmuring came from the audience.

"I hear she's a polytheist!" the class treasurer shouted. "She worships Janos, the god of chaos!"

"She's a Wicca!" a girl in the audience yelled. "That's the only reason people learn that weirdo language!"

"I hear it's real easy to strangle her!" the soccer goalie declared. "Her neck is so thin! I almost had her once, but she hit me."

"Enough!" Fejiro exploded. "I cannot take this anymore!" He ran off the stage and out of the auditorium with his famed quarterback speed.

"He's … just a little bit nervous!" Libby said, tittering. "I'll be right back!" Her heels clattered against the wooden stage as she rushed outside.

Fejiro was just outside the door. "I just cannot stand there grinning, pretending to go along with this … this shit!" he exclaimed. "'Her neck is thin?!' Really?! These people are utterly empty headed; if they heard that … I don't know … that pure water could MELT her, they'd most likely believe that, too!"

"Fejiro!" Libby shrieked. "You think I LIKE hearing all these bad things about my best friend?! I hate it! Don't belittle me!"

"Then, let's go! Come on!"

Libby scoffed. "What?! We can't do that! They need us! They need me!"

"No." Fejiro's face was grim. "You need them. You cannot resist their … worshipping!"

"I know," Libby sighed. "But who can?"

"I think you know the answer to that question, Libby. You know who can, and who has." He crossed his arms.

"Fejiro, I miss her too." She put her arms around his waist. "But we have to keep living. It's what she would have wanted, besides. You are trying your hardest to find her, but I don't think she wants to be found."

Fejiro let out a sigh. "You're right, of course. As usual." He kissed her. "And of course I'll go to prom with you, if you will be happy."

"Of course, baby," Libby said with a grin. "But … you'll be happy too, right?"

"You know me." He gave a small smile. "I'm always happy. Look, I have to … go to the library!" He ran towards the stairs.

Disheartened but cheerful, Libby took to the stage again. "He's okay! He's just a little queasy, that's all! He feels so bad that he can't stay!"

"You're so good!" Mrs. Grufuld exclaimed. "Both of you are. Everyone, let's toast Libby and Fejiro!"

"LIBBY AND FEJIRO!" The audience was on its feet, cheering City College's new it couple. Libby smiled broadly and soaked up the adoration. Maybe she had made the wrong choice, but this was her life now, and she needed to accept that. The cheering went on for at least fifteen minutes.

Little did anyone know that the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers was hiding right outside behind a fake plant, listening, and trying hard not to cry.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Elizabeth no longer wore the school uniform. No one noticed; they were only terrified. She went back to the same boutique where she had bought the dress she had worn on that fateful day on the Ides of March, and bought five more just like it. Black didn't clash with her skin, and she was done with trying to fit in. The junior assembly on the first day broke her heart, but then she thought: _Eff them. Eff everyone. _Her feelings for Fejiro were just a silly crush, and she had to let that go.

As for her home life, she was a ghost daughter and sister. Mr. Thornberg did not attempt to speak to her; she knew what she had to do to keep him civil towards her. Rose, on the other hand, had a running monologue with Elizabeth for a few weeks before finally giving up. Her sister had gone mad, she decided.

This was the status quo until one day in November. Elizabeth was in her room studying out of Wheelock (her City coursework was easy since she wasn't in IB), when suddenly there was a roar from the kitchen. "ELIZABETH THORNBERG! GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!"

Elizabeth seriously considered ignoring him, but ultimately she decided that she would not like to die, and she replied, "Yes Dad! I'm coming!" Rose, who was in the kitchen with her father, felt her heart leap at the sound of her elder sister's voice.

When Elizabeth arrived in the kitchen, Mr. Thornberg was fuming. "Look what I got in the mail today!" he shouted with hatred. "A letter, a warning, about YOU! The Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers! Well, you deserve it! Explain! Why would you … humiliate me like this?!"

Elizabeth gathered all her courage. "What have you done for me?" she asked sarcastically. "You've treated me like dog poo my entire life, and I've put up with it! Because I love you! And Rose! So for once, I'd like to be who I truly am, and you do NOT get a say in that!"

For a moment, Mr. Thornberg was speechless. Suddenly, there was something in his life that he could not control! "I-I gave you shelter! Food from my table! Money from my bank! You ungrateful bitch!"

"Daddy," Rose squeaked. "Please! Stop shouting! It scares me!"

"You're right, Rosie." Though his voice was loving, his eyes shot daggers at Elizabeth. "There needs to be no more shouting. Elizabeth! You have twenty minutes to pack your things and get out. Understood?" Rose was crying.

"Rose …" Elizabeth began, making a move towards her sister.

"No!" Mr. Thornberg barked. "Don't come near my daughter! Get out of my sight!"

As she packed, Elizabeth decided that it was better this way. She hated her home, and Rose needed to learn how to live without her. She needed to be alone. Completely alone. That was the only way. But even so, Rose's face as she left cut deep into her soul.

Elizabeth was the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers, so it was obvious to her where her new home should be. After a quick trip to a nearby locksmith, the bleachers were hers. A loose brick provided a home for Wheelock's Latin, and there was an abandoned equipment closet for her clothes. After a day or two of moving in, Elizabeth felt at home. Sort of.

One night in December, she was eating a dinner of baked beans stolen from the cafeteria, when suddenly she heard a voice. "Eliza! There you are!"

Another voice. "Madam President, I don't think this is safe." Elizabeth looked up. Rose and Ben. Of course.

"I've asked you to call me Rose, remember?" Rose said to Ben.

"Yes, Madam President."

Elizabeth stood up. "What is it, Rose?" she asked. "Does Dad have some awful message for me?"

"Dad's dead," Rose snapped. "He was diagnosed with brain cancer just after you left. He just passed two days ago. Thought you'd want to know."

Elizabeth was silent for a minute. "Good," she finally said. "This is better."

"That's a twisted way of thinking!"

"No, it's true. Because now it's just us. You can help me, Rose!"

Rose shook her head. "No, Eliza, I can't."

"Yes, you can! You're a class president!"

"Hell she is," Ben said suddenly. "I've seen what she's been doing! Taking advantage of the freshmen! She's just as twisted as you are!" He turned to Rose. "If Mom hadn't already built a ramp for you, you would be out in the street!"

"I'm merely using what I have to my advantage," Rose said with pain in her voice. "I have cerebral palsy …"

"Which gives you the right to run everyone's life! Including mine! Look, Libby is going to prom with Fejiro." At that, a little shockwave of hurt went through Elizabeth's body. But she kept silent. This was between Rose and Ben.

"Libby?"

"Yes, Rose, that's right. So, you can stay here with your sister, and I can go be with Libby. I've got to tell her how I feel about her. Rose, I lost my heart to Libby the moment I saw her."

Rose rounded on Ben with an intense look that Elizabeth had never seen before from her. "You lost your heart? You lost your heart?!" Rose slowly backed Ben against the back of the bleachers.

"Rose," Elizabeth started. "Rosie, stop this. You can't run him over!"

"Oh, watch me!" And before Elizabeth could stop her, Rose rammed her Quantum 600 power wheelchair onto Ben's foot. He grimaced in pain.

"My toe! It's shattered!"

"ROSE MICHELLE THORNBERG!" Elizabeth forced Rose's hand off her joystick, and backed the chair off of Ben's foot. He slumped onto the ground in pain. Elizabeth had to do something. She started in on his shoelaces.

He tried to crawl away. "Don't touch me, bitch!"

"Shut up! I have to look at it!" When Ben's foot was exposed, Elizabeth could see a deep cut in the toe, with blood and pieces of bone coming out. "Rose, what have you done?!"

Rose gasped. "Oh God, what have I done? I am what they say: the Twisted Bitch of the Freshmen! Eliza, please, what can you do?"

"His toe is beyond repair. I'll have to cut it off."

"What?! No! I'll call an ambulance!"

"And get me arrested? No thanks! Plus, there's just no time! He's losing blood!" With a quick swipe of Elizabeth's kitchen knife, Ben's toe was off. But Elizabeth was so nervous that her knife slipped, and a second toe was on the ground.

"FUCKING BITCH!" Ben's cry could be heard all throughout the campus.

"Ugh, Elizabeth!" Rose groaned. "Put him in my lap." She drove away with Ben, who was now unconscious. "THE TWISTED BITCH HAS STRUCK! THE TWISTED BITCH OF THE BLEACHERS HAS STRUCK!" Elizabeth was now completely alone for sure.

On the night of January 16, the anniversary of Magister Hirum's firing, the librarian at City College forgot to lock the door as she left for the night. Elizabeth slipped in after her dinner without mishap. After a quick Google search, she found the address that she was looking for. As she wrote it down in a notebook, she smiled to herself. This trip wouldn't fail her.

The next day was a Saturday, so it was easy for Elizabeth to catch a bus to North Charles Street. After getting off the bus, she only had to walk a few blocks before she found Number 323. It was an old, 19th century house, but very much removed from its former glory. When Elizabeth knocked, a young woman in a nurse's uniform answered the door. "How can I help you?" she asked.

"Is this the home of Ahmad Hirum?" Elizabeth inquired. "My name is Elizabeth Thornberg. I'm one of his old students from City."

The nurse raised her eyebrow. "Come into the foyer. I'll see if he seems interested." As she sat down in the foyer, Elizabeth felt a pang of worry. Why did Magister Hirum need a nurse? He was late middle age, not old, not yet. The nurse jolted her back to reality. "He's in the master bedroom. His eyes lit up when I said your name, so I think he really wants to see you."

After a quick thank you, Elizabeth practically ran up the stairs in excitement. In her anticipation, she was going from being worried about her teacher's health to being ecstatic about seeing him again and back. The bedroom door was ajar. "Magister Hirum?" She knocked.

No response. Elizabeth entered the room and saw her French teacher splayed out on a hospital bed, motionless. Books that Elizabeth knew and loved were all around the room, but the time for reading was over. Magister Hirum looked at Elizabeth intensely as she came over to his bed.

"Magister Hirum, it's me, Elizabeth, from City." She took his hand. "I know a little more Latin now. I've been using Wheelock. I'm fighting for it. Magister Hirum, can't you speak? Potesne loqui?"

Magister Hirum looked at the multicolored girl, and saw the vulnerability that was still there despite several betrayals. His nurse had read him all the newsletters about the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers, and he couldn't disappoint her further. So, with effort, he said the only sound he could still say. "Baaa."

Elizabeth started to cry. "Oh, Magister, I am so sorry! I'm trying my hardest!" She wrapped her arms around him. "I promise you, I will defeat Mr. Oswald!" She thought for a moment. "Prom night. Junior prom night! Mrs. Grufuld will be there! He'll be unguarded. Perfect! It's on a Sunday, isn't it? Sunday, April 26. Yes." Magister Hirum gave Elizabeth the faintest of nods. Encouragement.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The day of the junior prom dawned fair and bright. Libby spent all day getting ready. Her hair was curled to perfection, and her blue dress fit like a glove. She guessed that Fejiro was off doing whatever guys did to get ready for prom, as he was not answering his phone. _Today is a happy day. Today is a happy day. _But it wasn't. Eight toed Ben was following her around like a sick dog, the whole freshman class was being forced to wait on Rose hand and foot, and Fejiro seemed like he was off in his own little world.

And Elizabeth. Libby missed Elizabeth. She wished she could force her best friend to look pretty for the prom, only to find Lizzie in a corner reading Virgil or whatever. She would snatch the book from Elizabeth, and get her to dance with Ben. But that's where the fantasy didn't work. Ben hated Elizabeth, just like everyone else at City did. Sigh.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth was so nervous that day that she barely ate anything. It was a Sunday, so she conducted a mini church service for herself, hoping that God would somehow help her in the night's endeavor, if He even existed. She wasn't sure.

That night, on her way to Mr. Oswald's office, Elizabeth sneaked a peak in the gymnasium. She could see Libby having the first dance with Fejiro, wearing a silver crown and sash. Of course. Libby won everything. Fejiro, on the other hand, looked a little reluctant. That surprised Elizabeth. She would have thought that Fejiro would be into this sort of thing. Well, maybe he had changed.

As much as she would have loved to bust down Mr. Oswald's door, Elizabeth knew that the proper thing would be to knock. After all, he wouldn't know it was her until it was too late. So, she took a deep breath, and knocked five times: shave and a haircut.

"Two bits!" Mr. Oswald exclaimed gleefully from behind the door. "Come in, please! It's open, 'cause I know who's a-knockin'!"

"Cut the crap," Elizabeth snapped, striding into the office. "I have news."

"You've been quite the naughty girl over this past year, Elizabeth," Mr. Oswald said, shaking his head like a disapproving father. "The Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers, and School Butcher. Impressive resume. But what news have ya got for me?"

"Magister Hirum has advanced ALS," Elizabeth said bluntly. "He can no longer walk, and the only sound he can make is 'ba.' He's on his deathbed. I hope you're satisfied."

"Oh, I am sorry to hear that." Elizabeth shuddered as he stood up and put a hand on her shoulder. "Monsieur Hirum always did like to … speak out."

Elizabeth turned sharply toward him. "If I was crazy, I would say that YOU are to blame for Magister Hirum's condition!"

"I'm the Wizard of City, not God, Miss Elizabeth." Mr. Oswald started walking leisurely around his office, ignoring Elizabeth's deathly glare. "I did, it so happens, cut off his health care, but who knows the unfortunate events that led to his failing health?"

Elizabeth was speechless with rage for a moment. "You … you monster! Are you a professional? No! You just … conveniently push people out of the way so you can get what you want! You know what? I'm going to report you to the school board!"

Mr. Oswald chuckled. "Who would believe you? The school board knows perfectly well that you are a liar, a dangerous threat to everyone's well being."

"Why, I oughta …"

"But, there is a way out, my dear Elizabeth." He pointed his finger like a college professor. "Join me. Take IB classes. You're smart; you could easily catch up, I'm sure." He leaned in so close to her ear that she could feel his hot breath. It disgusted her. "I could tell everyone that you're the best thing since sliced bread. That's how much power I have."

"You don't deserve it." Her words exploded like four little bombs.

"Well, that's a matter of opinion, Elizabeth. How does that saying go? History is written by the victors, right? Who said that? I forget."

"Winston Churchill." She couldn't believe she was actually playing along with him.

"Ah, yes! The man who got jolly old England through World War II! Admirable, very admirable." He nodded his head thoughtfully.

Elizabeth was now officially sick of this. "Bored now. I don't even care if I get arrested." And she lunged for him.

But Mr. Oswald was too quick. He danced over to the intercom and pushed the button. "ANY MEMBERS OF THE FOOTBALL TEAM IN THE BUILDING MUST REPORT TO MY OFFICE NOW! WE HAVE A MAJOR SITUATION!" His voice was very different from the gentle, fatherly one he had just used with Elizabeth. It was the voice of a dictator.

Two minutes later, a voice Elizabeth knew all too well was heard coming into the office. "I am here, Mr. Oswald! The others will be coming shortly. What is the situation?" Fejiro Akelemo. In a tux.

"Fejiro!" Elizabeth exclaimed stupidly.

"Be silent, bitch! I have you ensnared now!"

"Fejiro …" His heart ached as he saw the hurt in her eyes. "Please, not you too."

"I said be silent!" Then, without warning, Fejiro punched Mr. Oswald in the face. Elizabeth gasped as the principal fell to the floor.

"Fejiro," Elizabeth whispered. "You frightened me."

"I am sorry for that, Bet." He looked into her eyes. _Those eyes … _

Suddenly, a streak of sparkly blue flew into the office, and Elizabeth found herself wrapped tightly in Libby's arms. "Lizzie!" Libby exclaimed. "You're okay! Omigod! I missed you! You're, like, nowhere!"

Elizabeth gently extracted herself from the blonde's suffocating embrace. "Hey, Libby," she said, chuckling. "I missed you too."

"Fejiro!" Libby shrieked, turning to her boyfriend. "Are you deficient?! Look what you did to Mr. Oswald!"

"I had too, Libby," he said, walking over to Elizabeth. "Best he doesn't notice our escape."

"Our escape?! What on Earth do you mean?"

Fejiro shook his head solemnly. "Not your escape, Libby. You are staying here, as you so chose. But I am going with Elizabet."

"What?!" Libby screamed. "Now I know you're insane!"

"Fejiro," Elizabeth whispered again, as if that was her lifeline. "I don't understand …" She did not dare believe her ears.

"Elizabet Melina Thornberg," Fejiro said grandly, getting down on one knee and making Elizabeth's thoughts race. "I am hopelessly, eternally, and completely in love with you. Will you let me come with you and make my heart whole again?"

"Fejiro …" Happy tears streamed down her face, but she didn't care at that moment. "Yes. Yes!" He was being a cheese ball, and she knew it, but all that mattered then was … _Fejiro loves me. Fejiro loves me! _

"Yes!" Fejiro repeated excitedly. He stood up and took her hands, sending positive pulses through her arms. "Then we must go now! To where you live!"

"I will show you!" And they rushed past Libby without even saying goodbye, hand in hand.

"Wake up, you!" Libby shouted, kicking Mr. Oswald. "You've just lost your most dangerous student and your quarterback! And I've lost my boyfriend." At this sudden realization, Libby sunk down into a heap as Mrs. Grufuld came in, looking very confused. But on the floor, Libby noticed a photo of a young woman with a much younger Mr. Oswald. An old girlfriend, Libby surmised. But at the time, she was too heartbroken to notice the young woman's resemblance to her former best friend.

"Libby?" Mrs. Grufuld asked, jolting her back to reality. "Mr. Oswald? Are you alright? What on Earth is going on? Did Fejiro Akelemo secure the Bitch?"

"He did," Mr. Oswald answered, for Libby was now in tears. "Just not in the way we all expected, if you know what I mean."

"Oh." Mrs. Grufuld was silent for a moment. "Well, it sounds like we need a Plan B."

"Yes … especially with Akelemo now protecting her."

"Use her sister." Mrs. Grufuld and Mr. Oswald turned to see Libby speaking quietly, still sitting in her corner. "Spread some rumor. Make her think her sister is in danger somehow. She'll rush to her side … and you'll have her. Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go home now. Good night." Libby left the office sadly.

"Wow," Mr. Oswald said. "Libby Balter actually has a good plan."

"Yes," Mrs. Grufuld agreed. "But Elizabeth's very smart. I don't think she would fall for just a rumor."

Mr. Oswald's eyes widened. "You're actually thinking about harming Rose Thornberg?!"

"Yes. My daughter and her husband can't seem to get along, and today they shipped their daughter to me for a while. Yes …" She thought a little more. "I'll need a space in the student parking lot, a smart car, crude oil … and my granddaughter."

The limo that Fejiro had hired for Libby and himself did not come and Libby took the bus home with a heavy heart. _I'm not that girl._


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

As Elizabeth led him to her lair behind the bleachers, Fejiro felt as though he was entering a dream, one of his many dreams of her. Her black dress longed to be taken off, her equally black hair longed to be undone. _Soon, soon, _he reassured himself. Meanwhile, Elizabeth's mind was reeling. Fejiro Akelemo, the IB poster boy, the king of City, loved her, the dangerous threat to the school, the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers. _How? _But yet, she loved his dark chocolate skin, his short dreadlocks. "This is your home?" Fejiro asked as she unlocked the gate.

"Yeah," she answered quietly. "I broke the lock and had a new one put on. I know, it's kind of a mess. Would you like something to eat? Let's see, I have some pizza from Friday, some corn from Monday, and a little bit of peanut butter."

"You steal from the cafeteria?"

"I'm afraid I have to. I can't go in there during lunchtime without causing a commotion." She hung her head.

Fejiro put his hand on her shoulder. "It's not your fault, Bet." He plucked up his courage. "And Bet? What I said back there was all true. I have loved you since you broke your wrist in French class."

"But ... Libby ...?"

"... will heal." But then Fejiro thought of something. "Oh, Bet, I am an idiot! I didn't even ask you if you loved me too! Oh, you probably think I am a ... douchebag!"

Elizabeth chuckled. "You're not a douchebag." Somehow, she allowed her lips to touch his. He didn't pull away in disgust, or say, "Gotcha!" No, he deepened the kiss, wrapping his arms around her body. His hands traveled up to her bun, and released the shining ebony locks from their prison of bobby pins. She lifted his oxford shirt over his head, not bothering to unbutton it. She only had a few seconds to admire his brown abs before he pushed her dress up to her waist, creating new sensations up and down her legs. "Fejiro ..."

"Bet ..." That alone was consent for both of them. Soon there was a pile of male and female garments on the pavement. Elizabeth and Fejiro fell onto the mattress, locked together in so many ways. He loved and memorized all the irregular patterns of her skin. Elizabeth screamed, upsetting some crows perched on the top of the bleachers. But the pain stopped almost as soon as it had started, and there was only ecstasy left.

The next morning, Fejiro woke up to the smell of eggs. "I got omelets!" Elizabeth said cheerfully. "Fresh from the BCC cafeteria. Mmm-mmm!"

"You are incredible," Fejiro said with a smile. What would be better than breakfast with Elizabeth Thornberg?

Breakfast was quiet until Elizabeth said, "I only wish ..."

Fejiro swallowed. "What?"

"I wish I could be beautiful, for you."

"Elizabet ..."

"And don't tell me that I am. You don't have to lie to me."

"I tell no lies! I'm just ... looking at things another way. And I hope that you and Libby can be friends again." A goofy smile appeared on Elizabeth's face.

"How did I get so lucky?" Suddenly, she jumped up. "Oh! You should see my book!" She removed a brick from the back of the bleachers and produced a book, a big book, the kind Fejiro avoided like the plague. Elizabeth opened Wheelock to the first couple of pages. "Read me that verb, all four principal parts." She pointed to the first word on the vocabulary list.

Fejiro fake groaned. "A quiz already?"

Elizabeth smirked. "If you pass, you get a treat."

"Alright. Amo, amare, amavi, amatum. Did I pronounce it right?"

"Mmm, v's are pronounced like w's, but you passed. Amo te." And oh, did Fejiro get his reward!

At about 7:30, Fejiro said, "You should try to meet Libby in secret. You know, to work things out."

"I know," Elizabeth said with a sigh. "It's just ..." Suddenly, she was interrupted by a loud rubber screech coming from the student parking lot. She bolted up. "What was that?!"

Fejiro took her hand. "Relax, Bet. It was probably just some idiot student driver." But then, a blood curdling scream echoed across the parking lot to the bleachers, followed by a great crash. With a shot of panic, Elizabeth recognized the screamer.

"Rose! She's in danger!"

"Your sister?"

"Yes! I have to go!" She hastily put her hair into her usual bun, and reached for her bowler hat.

"I'll go with you!"

"No, they hate you now, almost as much as they hate me. I can't put you in that kind of danger."

"Wait!" He slid out of his leather jacket. "Put this on. I am amazed that you survived the winter without a coat." He wrapped it around her body.

She put her arms through the sleeves. "Thank you, Fejiro. For everything. I have to go now." Elizabeth smiled sadly.

"Alright, Bet. Be safe. I love you."

She kissed him. "I love you too. Will we be together again?"

"Elizabet, we will be together always. You know that the person who screamed was your baby sister, so surely you know that." He pulled her into a long kiss before she broke away, and rushed for the student parking lot.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

It is common City legend how Darla Gather from Sydney, Australia ran over and killed the Twisted Bitch of the Freshmen on her first day at City. Libby, upon hearing the crash, went over to the scene and found the girl being doted on by a bunch of freshmen. Rose was in fact so hated that her classmates actually celebrated her death, and hailed Darla as a heroine. Mrs. Grufuld quickly and quietly got her granddaughter acquitted of manslaughter in the meantime.

Elizabeth arrived to find her sister dead, and Darla wearing that precious velvet scarf that represented Mr. Thornberg's love for his younger daughter. Elizabeth immediately disliked everything about Darla, from her silly, country girl pigtails to her annoying Australian accent. Plus, what made it worse was that the scarf (Rose's scarf!) was secured on the girl's impertinent neck by a safety pin with a combination. Libby credited Mr. Oswald, but Elizabeth was suspicious. This whole thing stunk of Mrs. Grufuld.

After making Darla satisfactorily terrified, Elizabeth took Rose's body back to the bleachers to have a proper funeral. She checked her phone and found a text from Fejiro. **The dudes were 2 close 2 the bleachers. Had 2 bolt. I'll sneak n2 ur bio class. Sry bout ur sis. Luv u xo. **Elizabeth sighed and texted back immediately. **K. B careful. Ttyl. 3 **

She burned Rose's body and had a good cry. She knew she had to get it out of her system before she was face to face with Darla again. Elizabeth felt a certain uncontrollable rage against the girl, and she had to nurture that if she wanted to get back that scarf. She had to be a twisted bitch.

Once the freshmen had all gone to class, Elizabeth made her way back to the student parking lot. Libby was there, staring at Darla's wrecked smart car. "You should be in class," Elizabeth remarked, making Libby jump.

"I'm waiting for them to come and toe this," Libby said, regaining her haughty air. "I have nothing left to say to you."

"Understand this." Elizabeth strode over to the other side of the car, now facing Libby. "She rams her clumsy car into my sister, and now she gets the scarf too?! What kind of screwed up logic is that? I am Rose's sister and her next of kin! This is unlawful!"

"Oh, what do you know about unlawful, Miss I'm-Gonna-Cut-Off-People's-Toes?" Libby softened, now remorseful. "Lizzie, it sucks, I know, to be run over by a car. But accidents happen!" She was trying hard to make everything all better, and Elizabeth knew it.

"Open your eyes, Libby! This is no fucking ACCIDENT! This is murder! And robbery! I'm smarter than the idiotic students you sweet talk!"

"Well, I'm a class official now, so they expect me to …"

"Lie?!"

"Be encouraging! Besides, what exactly have YOU been up to except running around and saying crazy Latin stuff?" This struck a nerve, and Libby knew it.

"It's better than inventing lockable safety pins," Elizabeth said through gritted teeth. "Did Mr. Oswald really invent that? I bet Mrs. Grufuld did and he just took credit for it."

"Well," Libby started, very proud of what she was about to say. "A lot of us are taking things that don't belong to us, aren't we?"

At this, Elizabeth prepared to punch Libby, but then thought better of it. "Ok, I know you're a little slow, so let me spell this out for you. Fejiro could have any girl in this school he wants. But he chose me. Me! Can you wrap that around those ridiculous blonde curls?! He never belonged to you. He doesn't love you, and he never did. He … loves … ME!"

That did it for Libby. She slapped her ex best friend with a loud, "Heyah!" What followed was a fierce series of slaps, kicks, and hair-pulling, all of which the girls would regret later. In five minutes, Libby had Elizabeth in a headlock, and was beating her with her own hat. Elizabeth thought she might suffocate when suddenly …

"Hey, ladies! Break it up!" Elizabeth found herself in the rough arms of a football player. Libby was free.

"Oho, I see!" Elizabeth exclaimed, struggling against the grip of her captor. "You murdered my sister in order to capture me! Very nice, Libby!"

But at that very moment, Fejiro came bounding from the direction of the bleachers. Libby screamed in horror as he put a knife to her throat. "Let the multicolored girl go!" Fejiro demanded dangerously. "Or, I swear, I will slit Libby the Good's throat!" He looked murderous, and Elizabeth was almost as frightened as Libby.

"Fejiro, please don't …" Libby was near tears.

"Hey man," the new quarterback said, turning to the boy holding Elizabeth. "We better not cause Libby Balter's death. Let the Bitch go." Then, to her surprise, the boy released Elizabeth with a hard shove. Fejiro tensed; he could kill the boy just for that. But, Elizabeth was free. He picked up her bowler hat and gently put it on her head.

"There you are, love," Fejiro whispered. "Bet, go, now!"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, not without you!"

"Hush! Now! Go!" With fear in her heart, Elizabeth rushed for the bleachers.

"Get him!" the quarterback ordered. And before Libby could do anything, the football team wrestled the knife out of Fejiro's hand and held him tightly.

"Stop this!" she shrieked. "This is insanity! In the name of goodness, stop! What did he do wrong? He just … he loves her."

"I am so sorry, Libby," Fejiro said quietly.

"Let's take him to the football field!" the quarterback exclaimed. "Let's pummel him good until he tells us where the Bitch went!"

Libby was frantic. "No! Don't hurt him! Please, don't hurt him! No! Fejiro!" But the football team paid her no mind as they carried Fejiro off to his impending doom.


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey, I normally don't do this, but due to recent events, I must.**

**Raven Curls - Thank you for your input. Keep in mind that Mrs. Grufuld has A LOT of influence in Baltimore, and that Elizabeth and Rose's father is dead. Also, this is kind of meant to be an extreme satire of my own school, so yeah.**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 15

"Let's take him to the football field! Let's pummel him good until he tells us where the Bitch went!"

"No! Don't hurt him! Please, don't hurt him! No! Fejiro!" Elizabeth's heart started accelerating even more when she heard Libby's cry. No! Libby must have been freaking out for no good reason. Fejiro was fine! She had to be hearing it wrong!

But still, Elizabeth rushed to the closest window, and her fears became realized. The entire football team was hauling Fejiro out of the parking lot and onto the football field. No! She had to save him; they would kill him if he didn't tell them where she was. But how? A disturbance. She had to create a disturbance to distract the football team. Better her than Fejiro.

Then panic set in. "FEJIROOOOOOOO!" Elizabeth sprinted from her hiding place by the second floor staircase, terrifying some seniors who were doing a group project out in the hallway. Like on the Ides of March, the only thing that was powering her was adrenaline and fear. But it wasn't an exciting fear. It was a dreadful, painful fear. She rushed to the library, threw open the door to the tower staircase, and started climbing. Students weren't allowed to go up to the tower, but then again, students also weren't allowed to question Mr. Oswald or the IB program. Elizabeth could care less. All that mattered right then was Fejiro. Fejiro.

As she ran up the stairs, she recited Latin verbs to keep calm, or at least remotely calm. "Amo, amare, amavi, amatum. Laudo, laudare, laudavi, laudatum." Love. Praise. Two things she had very little of. "Neco, necare, necavi, necatum. Morior, mori, mortuus sum." Kill. They were going to kill him. They may have already killed him. Die. Rose died. Magister Hirum was about to die. Fejiro was going to die.

Elizabeth got up to the top of the tower, the famous City College tower, and hit the great bell with her Latin book. She shrieked, shrieked like the villain they all thought she was, including Libby. Libby! She was so disgusted with Libby! What Libby had done was a violation of "sisters-before-misters" on an epic scale. She slammed down on the bell again.

"Parco, parcere … parcere … ugh! That third principal part! To spare. But they won't spare him, now will they?" She chuckled darkly to herself. "What am I, a witch? Chanting Latin like it's some sort of magical spell? If Fejiro was here, he would be amused by that." Remembering Fejiro, Elizabeth rushed to the window. The football team had departed; all that Elizabeth saw on the field was a body. A motionless body. No.

"No, no, no, NO! FEJIRO!" All hope was officially shattered. Everyone she had ever tried to help, everyone she had ever tried to save, ended up dying.

Rose. The fragile little sister whom Elizabeth had always cared for devotedly, now no more than ashes on the pavement. Sweet and trusting, despite her tyrannical behavior during the last months of her life. In love with Ben, who now just called himself Hall Monitor. Ben's disinterest in Rose had been the beginning of her destruction. But Elizabeth hadn't done Jack to save her sister, even before Darla swerved her way into their lives. Except save her boyfriend and devote an entire childhood to her care. No good deed goes unpunished.

Magister Hirum. Kind and passionate, the first teacher who ever truly connected with Elizabeth. Never mentioned her skin even once. He had given her a mission, and she screwed it up. Instead of making people love Latin, they hated it even more now, because of her. She empathized with him, and had tried to her very best to help him, to make good. But all she had made was a mess. No good deed goes unpunished.

And Fejiro. Fejiro. Foolish, brainless, handsome, gentlemanly, noble, perfect Fejiro. The "jiro" part of his name was pronounced like "hero," and what a hero he had been! He had sacrificed himself for her. He had been killed for her. She had killed him! She should have said no. She should have forced him to stay with Libby for his own safety. But she loved him, so she just acted on her love. She had made him happy for that little while. But, because it was her he loved, he couldn't live. She strew death in her path. No good deed goes unpunished.

Elizabeth did not want to retrieve Fejiro's body. No, that belonged to his family now. It was the least she could do for them. In fact, she peaked over the bleachers during lunch and saw that it was gone. He was gone. Was a dead body still a he? Elizabeth didn't know.

She thought about killing herself. Actually, she seriously considered it. But Fejiro wouldn't have wanted that, and dammit, she wanted that scarf! Elizabeth would sleep off grief, and start her campaign against Darla in the morning. No, Elizabeth had died with her love. The Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers, on the other hand, was alive and well. And she had a plan.

**Also, THANK YOU for nominating me for a Greg! That makes me feel so honored and so welcome here. This story is my baby.**

**Cheers,**

**Elle Dottore**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Stalking the cafeteria on the next day, Elizabeth had to admit that she was impressed with Darla. On her second day of school, she already had three friends: a dark skinned, badly deformed athlete who called himself IA, Ben, and a very small boy whom Elizabeth recognized from the day Magister Hirum got fired. Lucky Darla.

Discreetly veiled, Elizabeth sneaked over to the adjacent table. She thought it best to know her enemy; it was the best way to figure out how to defeat her. So, Elizabeth gnawed on some baguette, and eavesdropped on the four friends.

"I talked to Grandmother Grufuld," Darla said. "And now I have good news! Wanna hear it?"

"Hell yeah!" Ben exclaimed. "Tell us!"

Darla raised her eyebrow. "You fellas ready for this?"

"Come on, Darla," IA said with a grin. "Tell us your good news before Brendan wets his pants."

"Hey!" Brendan, the small boy, said, offended. "I resent that!"

Darla squealed. "We've got an appointment with Mr. Oswald next Monday at 5! Eee!"

"Wow!" Ben said happily. "Go Darla! I can get my prosthetic!"

"And I can get my stress counseling!" Brendan exclaimed with glee. "Finally!"

"And I suppose I'll get my coach class," IA said thoughtfully. "Well done, Darla." IA's smile took Elizabeth aback for a second. Though his lips had gashes and some of his teeth were missing, IA reminded her of … _Cut it out, Elizabeth! Grief has made you wacky! _

"IA," Darla began thoughtfully. "Wouldn't you like Mr. Oswald to take you to a plastic surgeon? I mean, I like you anyway, no matter what, but …"

IA shook his head. "No, Darla, things like that don't matter to me anymore. Besides, I really need coach class!" They all laughed kindly with him.

"Hey, I just thought of something," Ben said. "What are you going to ask Mr. Oswald for, Darla?"

Darla sighed. "I suppose now's as good a time as any," she said sadly. "I'm going to ask Mr. Oswald for a plane ticket back home to Sydney."

Brendan frowned. "Why? I thought you liked us. Is it Ben? Is he annoying you?"

"No." Darla smiled a little. "It's just … I miss my home. I miss my parents, even though they fight like cats and dogs. And, there's the Twisted Bitch. I'm sure she's not above killing for a scarf. It's just not safe for me here."

"I get it," Ben said comfortingly. "I'd move too if my mom would let me. But she says it's lucky the Bitch didn't take my whole foot."

Darla looked disgusted. "Geesh. This Bitch really does have a screw loose, doesn't she?"

"Yeah." Ben laughed a little. "You could say that."

It was then that Elizabeth decided to reveal herself with a cackle. She threw off her veil and plopped down next to Darla, who now was as white as a sheet. "Hey, Darla!" Elizabeth exclaimed jovially. "What's up? I see you've made some friends! Great, great." But in her inner turmoil, Elizabeth couldn't pull off the sarcasm anymore. She glared at the three boys. "You stay away from her! You hear me, Brendan? Ben? IA?" Only thinking of revenge, Elizabeth stood up and struck IA across the face. He looked at her, dumbstruck. Darla caught him as he fell.

"You twisted bitch!" Darla screamed, turning to Elizabeth angrily. "It's bad enough threatening me, but you go and hit someone who's already so badly hurt!"

"Don't patronize me, pookie! I've been here way longer than you have! Now hand over that scarf!" Heads turned to stare at the battling girls.

"I can't! I don't know the combination! But even if I did, I would never surrender it to you, you monster!" Elizabeth went for Darla, but Ben quickly stepped in front of her.

"Stop right there, bitch," he said, looking nothing like the sweet boy Elizabeth knew. "You wanna hurt her, you hurt me first. Beat it."

"Fine," Elizabeth said curtly. "You win this round. But don't miss me, 'cause I'll be back! I'll get you, pookie, and your little dog too!" In a rage, Elizabeth cackled and ran for the bleachers.

That Friday, Elizabeth decided that she needed reinforcements against Darla. Loyola University was the place to go. It was a place full of people who were just as impassioned as her. After climbing up three flights of stairs in Knott Hall, she arrived at the classics department. As soon as she entered the classics lounge, the boys in there turned and gasped. "It's her!"

"It's the Bitch of the Bleachers from City College!"

Elizabeth smiled and turned to the first boy. "Yes. Good. You all know me. What is your name?"

"I'm Christian, Your Classicalness. How may we help you?"

"A new student at my school has killed my sister and taken my property."

"Oh no! That's horrible!"

"Yes. Quite. Anyway, she has an appointment with our principal on Monday at 5. After her appointment, you will ambush her and bring her to me."

"To the bleachers?"

"No, to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Of course, to the bleachers!" Part of Elizabeth marveled at her short fuse. The other part simply did not care anymore.

Christian tried to smile at her. "We are strong guys, Your Classicalness. We will do it, won't we, guys?" The other guys sent up a chorus of agreement.

Elizabeth nodded. "Good. Do not fail me, if you truly love Latin." Look at her, threatening people. She felt like the Margret Hamilton character from _Babes in Arms_. And Darla was Billie.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

At 5:30 that Monday, Elizabeth was pacing the pavement behind the bleachers. She knew it was too early for the Loyola boys to be back with Darla, but she was nervous. She wanted this to be over with. But most of all, she wanted that scarf. It was hers. It had been Rose's. Now Rose was dead. So it was now Elizabeth's. It was that simple. Why was Elizabeth the only one who could see that?

Suddenly, Christian and his cronies came running towards her. Empty handed. No. She went quickly up to meet them. "Where is the sophomore?" Elizabeth demanded. The boys all mumbled and avoided her gaze. "WELL?!"

"Something awful happened," Christian started. "We were listening in on her conversation with Mr. Oswald, and he said that he would give her and her friends what they wanted, if they … if they …"

"IF THEY WHAT?!" Elizabeth had no time for stutterers.

"If they arrested you and stole your bowler hat. I'm sorry." And he really did look sorry.

Elizabeth snorted. "That's code for killing me, I'm sure." Suddenly she turned angry again. "Well, what are you waiting for?!"

Christian looked confused. "Your Classicalness?"

"BRING ME THAT GIRL! Knock out or kill her friends if you have to, but I want her alive and unharmed. Don't worry, none of them are very strong. You'll be fine. Take special care of that velvet scarf; I want that most of all. Now off you fly! Fly!" Christian lead his band away, bewildered at his young, fierce boss.

At 6:15, Elizabeth was eating some awful chicken when she heard, "GET OFF ME! LET ME GO! WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?!" Darla. Perfect. Elizabeth looked up to see Christian and another boy carrying a struggling Darla between them. They opened the gate, and threw Darla inside.

"The bleachers," Christian said bluntly. "Bitch's orders. Didn't feel like telling you before. Have fun." He turned to Elizabeth. "There you are, Your Classicalness."

Elizabeth grinned and opened her purse. "Good. Thank you. Here, 50 bucks. Divide it however you want; I don't care."

Christian eagerly took the money. "You're welcome, Your Classicalness! If you need us again, you know where to find us!" Then, they all left in one celebratory mass.

Elizabeth turned to Darla. "Hey, Darla. Welcome to mea casa. Chez moi. It's not much, but it's all I got. There's no place like home."

"Shut up," Darla spat. "You're not getting this scarf."

Elizabeth seized Darla by the scarf and pushed her up against the bleachers. "Oh yes, I am. I will choke you with it if you don't give it to me."

"N-no! Libby the Good Bitch said not to." Darla closed her eyes so she couldn't see Elizabeth's blotched face. But she could still hear Elizabeth's screech of rage.

"LIBBY! OF COURSE YOU WOULD LISTEN TO LIBBY! GOOD BITCH, MY ASS!" She threw Darla down onto the ground. Darla groaned in obvious pain.

"What's your problem? Who put so much salt in your Kool-Aid that you're this much of a … bitch?"

Elizabeth softened and sighed. "I ask myself that question every day." She snapped back to attention. "You know what? You're hanging out with my clothes until you decide to give me my little sister's scarf!" And Elizabeth thrust open the door to the equipment closet and stuffed Darla inside. The door closed with a deafening slam that covered Darla's scream.

By 7:30, Elizabeth had finished her dinner and washed her hair. She was reading out of Wheelock when she suddenly heard a muffled cry, "Please let me out. What did I ever do to you?"

"You know what you did! Stop that crying! I can't listen to it anymore. You wanna go back to P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney? Then get that scarf off your neck!" Then, Elizabeth saw her. Libby. Standing in the open gate. Shit. "Fine. Get your butt inside so I can close the gate. What do you want?"

"Lizzie, I'm your best friend; what do you think I want?" Libby asked as she walked through the gate. "I want to talk to you! You are out of control! It's just a flipping scarf. Let it go! Take a pill!"

But Elizabeth was a force to be reckoned with. "I can do whatever the hell I want! I am the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers!" Suddenly she gave a little shriek as her phone beeped. No one ever texted her, at least since … **Fejiro Akelemo has sent you a message. **Fejiro Akelemo? _Fejiro?! _With shaking fingers, Elizabeth opened the text. **Im alive! Hooray! & dont do the doubting thing cause u kno my phone has a psswrd. Im w/ darla. Im ia. I'll rescue her & pretend 2 kill u. b calm, we'll b fine. Mums the wrd. Luv u soooo much! Xxxxoooo. **Elizabeth tried to hide her growing excitement as she texted back. **OMG, gr8! Darla is n my closet, fyi. C u thn! **

"Lizzie!" Libby shrieked, bringing Elizabeth back to reality. "What is going on?!"

"It's Fejiro," Elizabeth said quickly. "He won't be coming round here anymore." She hated to do this to Libby, but it was the only way.

Libby's voice wobbled. "So, he's …" Elizabeth nodded sadly. "Oh gosh! Lizzie, I'm so sorry!"

Elizabeth shook her head fiercely. "No, I should be apologizing to you. If he was still with you …"

"He would be miserable. He loved you. He always loved you; I see that now."

Resigned, Elizabeth took Wheelock back out of the wall. "Here. Go on. Take it. Teach who you can, please!" It was then that Libby finally understood the passion in Elizabeth's eyes. But …

"Lizzie, I don't know any Latin." Even so, she took the textbook.

"You'll have to learn. It's up to you now, Libby. You can do what I never could."

Libby bit her lip. "You dress me in borrowed robes. I used to be so stupid."

"I used to be so secluded." Desperately, Elizabeth clutched her best friend's hand. "You'll always be in my heart. Understand?"

Libby nodded and smiled despite herself. "Look at you, quoting _Tarzan_."

"Look at you, quoting _Macbeth_." The girls shared their last laugh.

Suddenly, they heard voices. "It looks like the gate's locked."

"I'll pick it!"

"Lizzie, they'll kill you!" Libby screeched. "C'mon, I'll help you escape!"

"No, Libby!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "You escape. No one can find you here. Go!" Libby, thankfully, made it over the back of the bleachers before Ben and Fejiro came rushing in.

"She must be keeping Darla in her closet," Fejiro told Ben. "You pick the lock and get Darla out! I'll deal with the Bitch!"

Then, Elizabeth found herself in Fejiro's strong arms. "Fejiro …" she choked.

"Fight with me," he whispered. "We need to buy time for them to escape. I need you to be the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers, okay, love?"

"Alright," Elizabeth whispered back, taking a deep breath. "Ha ha, you think you can defeat me, you injured athlete? I'm worse than any football player!"

"You are a twisted, twisted person!" Fejiro retorted, playing along. "You deserve to be vanquished, and vanquished you shall be!" They pretended to pull and push each other vigorously until Ben ushered Darla out.

"Need any help?" Ben asked concernedly, poking his head back in.

"No, I almost got her. You just go!" As soon as Ben was gone, Fejiro released Elizabeth. "Where are Rose's ashes?"

Confused, Elizabeth scooped them off the pavement. "Here. Why?"

"They are yours now. I need you to scream for me, okay?"

Now getting his drift, Elizabeth screamed like she was burning to death. "You idiot! I'm burning, burning! Oh, what a world! How could you destroy my beautiful twistedness?! Gaah! No!"

Fejiro quickly kissed her. "Hide in the closet! That was a top notch performance, by the way." He wiggled his eyebrows at her, making her fall in love with him all over again.

"When will you be back?"

"In an hour at the most. Stay strong, my heart."

"Wait, Fejiro!" She leaned on the door. "I'm sorry I hit you. I …"

Fejiro put a finger to her lips. "You didn't know. You didn't know. I love you."

The closet door closed, and Fejiro was gone. It was then that Elizabeth finally could process what had just happened. This was like something out of a Shakespeare play! And Libby, poor Libby. Elizabeth thought she heard some muffled sobbing from outside. But there was nothing she could do. She had to get out of this messed up school. But she already missed Libby terribly. Because of Libby, Elizabeth had been changed for good.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The death of the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers was a huge event at City College. The sophomores were eager to make Darla their president, but Darla asked for and got her plane ticket back home, so that was a done deal. It was Brendan who became class president, in a strange turn of events. His recent adventures seemed to have emboldened him, and everyone was pleased. Meanwhile, Ben started his campaign for class president in his own class, and Libby ran for SGA president. No one challenged her. IA withdrew from City, and was never heard from again.

At about 9, Elizabeth heard a knock on her closet door. "It worked!" The joy was palpable in Fejiro's voice.

"Fejiro!" Elizabeth exclaimed, throwing open the door and finally falling into his arms. "I thought you'd never get here!"

"Look," he said. "I got back your hat. Mr. Oswald didn't really want it. Are you packed?"

"Yeah," she replied, taking the hat. "Thanks." Elizabeth's eyes widened as she took in his deformed features. If only she had rung the bell sooner …

"Go ahead, touch!" Fejiro urged, sensing her thoughts. "I don't mind. You saved my life!"

She placed a blotched hand on his broken lips. "You're still beautiful." She smiled with wonder.

Fejiro shook his head. "No, Elizabet, you do not have to lie to me."

"I tell no lies!" Elizabeth smiled even wider. "I'm just looking at things another way." Fejiro grinned too as he remembered a time when he had said those same words to her.

"Come," Fejiro said, breaking away from Elizabeth's entrancing eyes. "We must go to the house of my parents and prove to them that we're not dead."

"But … Fejiro," Elizabeth started, immediately worried. "Do they know …?"

"They know that you are the kindest, most beautiful girl in the world." Elizabeth couldn't help but return his cheesy grin. "Now, let's go. They are waiting."

Meanwhile, Libby barged into Mr. Oswald's office, startling him and Mrs. Grufuld. "We three need to talk!" she demanded, fire in her eyes.

"Libby?" Mrs. Grufuld asked, confused.

"Who's this?" Libby practically shouted, pointing to the picture of Mr. Oswald and his young lover. He took the picture.

"Melina Thornberg," Mr. Oswald said pensively. "We had … relations back in '96. I remember we got high … oh no! My only daughter!" He fell on his side, sobbing.

"Of course!" Mrs. Grufuld exclaimed. "She had to have been of mixed race!"

"Get up!" Libby snapped. "You are resigning as principal and going back to New York. Understood?!"

"Yes, ma'am." He pitifully walked out of the office as two policemen came in. Mrs. Grufuld suddenly got squeamish.

"Libby, I know my methods have been … unconventional."

Libby scoffed. "Unconventional?! Try: against the law! Sir, may I please read the charges?" She batted her eyelashes at one of the policemen.

"Sure," he said, shrugging. "Knock yourself out."

"Mrs. Dolores Shelley Grufuld," Libby declared, clearing her throat. "You are hereby removed from your position here at City College, and are accused of employee abuse, and using minors to murder Miss Rose Thornberg, Mister Fejiro Akelemo, and Miss Elizabeth Thornberg." She giggled with glee. "I don't think you'll fare well in court. I hope you prove me wrong. I doubt you will. Have fun. Take her away!" The policemen proceeded to arrest Mrs. Grufuld, despite her rather loud protests. A rush of joy filled Libby, but it didn't last for long.

The Akelemos lived in Bolton Hill, in a magnificent rowhouse. "Fejiro!" Mrs. Akelemo cried when she opened the door. "Thank goodness! You are alright! They told us you were dead!" Then she noticed Elizabeth. "And you must be Elizabet! Come in! Welcome!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Akelemo," Elizabeth said, coming into the house. "It's so kind of you to take me in. I'm sure you've heard of my path of … destruction."

"Oh, twisted bitch nothing! And call me Ogoma, please!" She led them into the kitchen, and Elizabeth immediately felt at home.

"Mommy," Fejiro said. "Where is Daddy?"

"I will call him now. CHIEDOZIE! OUR SON HAS RETURNED! AND HE HAS BROUGHT WITH HIM A GIRL!" In response, there was a thundering from upstairs. Soon, Fejiro's father appeared in the kitchen.

"Fejiro," he calmly acknowledged his son. "Elizabet! Welcome!" He kissed her hand. "I am Chiedozie. I hope I can be your new father since I heard of your father's death."

Before Elizabeth could respond, Fejiro cut in, "Mommy, Daddy, we must return to Nigeria."

Ogoma blinked. "What?"

"Elizabet and I cannot stay here. They hate us and believe that we are dead." Fejiro's bluntness shocked his parents for a second.

"But, surely another school …" Chiedozie started.

"No, not even that." Fejiro grew desperate. "Please, Mommy, Daddy! They celebrated her death!" Chiedozie and Ogoma saw the seriousness in their son's eyes, and they realized just how much Elizabeth had changed him.

"He's right," Elizabeth added, trying to help. "They only have to see a flash of multicolored skin and they start shouting, 'Bitch, bitch!' I don't want to inconvenience you, but …"

Ogoma grabbed Elizabeth's hand. "I understand, child. We will do it, won't we, Chiedozie?" She looked pointedly at her husband.

"Alright, alright," Chiedozie admitted. "We will leave now, and I will have my people send our things."

Fejiro flew up like a rocket. "Thank you, Mommy, Daddy! Elizabet is already packed!"

Elizabeth went to Fejiro's room to keep him company while he packed. "Libby visited me just before you came to rescue Darla," she told him. "Don't worry, I didn't tell her anything about our little plan. We made up."

"Good," Fejiro said with a smile. "I know how much you care about her. And, I saw that she had your Latin book, so I got you this." He pulled a book out of his bag, clearly pleased with himself.

Elizabeth took it gingerly. "_Ecce Romani. _Oh, Fejiro!" She threw her arms around him.

He laughed. "I'll take that as a big thank you."

"Yes!" Once more, Elizabeth harbored that hope from long ago.

After they had checked into their gate, Chiedozie and Ogoma went to go get some coffee from Starbucks. Elizabeth and Fejiro settled into their airport seats. "You are quiet," Fejiro remarked. "What is it?"

"I just wish …" No. She couldn't tell him.

"What?"

"I wish that Libby could know that we're alive."

Fejiro's heart melted; he warmed her with his touch. "I know. I wish that too. But no one from City can ever know, not if we want to be safe." Elizabeth smiled up at him sadly.

The return of Chiedozie and Ogoma broke the moment. "It is time to go, children," Chiedozie announced. "We are, after all, Gate B4."

"Come, my Bet," Fejiro said gently, standing up. "We must go." So Elizabeth looked at the land of the free one last time, took Fejiro's strong hand, and moved towards her uncertain future.

In a fancy house in Homeland, Libby refused dinner and dashed upstairs to her room. She wanted to chat with Elizabeth on Facebook, but Lizzie must have deactivated her Facebook account before she … Libby didn't want to think it. She was slowly making City a better place, but nothing could bring Elizabeth back. Helplessly, Libby dialed Elizabeth's cell phone number. It rang five painful times before it went to voicemail. Elizabeth's strong, clear voice broke Libby's heart. "Hello, you've reached the phone of Elizabeth Thornberg, otherwise known as the Twisted Bitch of the Bleachers. If you would like to help me in my campaign, please call me back at your earliest convenience. If you would like to tell me how twisted I am, please leave your message after the tone. Thank you!"

The beep came. "Goodbye, Lizzie," Libby sobbed. "I miss you." She cried herself to sleep that night, filled with guilt and grief.


End file.
